Medicare Data Breach: A major Medicare data breach has put over 100,000 users at risk after online hackers made fake Medicare.gov accounts and stole personal details. This issue made many people really worried about identity theft and fraud in the healthcare system. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said that online criminals used older information like names, birth dates, and even Social Security numbers, which they found on the internet, to create fake accounts and get access to people’s private Medicare information.
The information includes:
- Medicare user numbers (MBIs)
- Birth dates and home addresses
- Medicare rights data
- Provider and bill-related info
Big Beautiful Bill Could Strip Millions of Medicaid: Will You Be Affected?
The breach was found earlier this year when some users started getting letters in the mail about accounts they didn’t even make. That’s when it became clear that someone else had created these accounts without permission. Fox News and CMS both shared that this was how the breach happened.
Even though there’s no proof yet that the stolen information has been used for scams, experts say it could lead to more fraud or misuse in the future. Because so much personal information was taken, including people’s Medicare numbers, birth dates, addresses, provider details, and billing data, there’s a real risk of identity theft.
CMS Sends New Cards
After the breach, CMS started sending new Medicare cards to all the people who were affected. These new cards have different Medicare numbers that are not connected to Social Security numbers, so they offer more protection. CMS is also working on closing all the fake accounts that were made and updating their online systems to stop anything like this from happening again. According to MassLive, this is all part of a bigger goal to keep people’s health information safe now that healthcare is moving more online.
CMS also said that people should pay close attention to anything new they get from Medicare, and if something doesn’t feel right, they should report it. Even though CMS reacted quickly, some experts say that the government still needs to build stronger protection to keep people’s private data safe from online criminals.
Medicare Part A Limits: How much you will Pay After Three Months in the Hospital?
What to do if someone if Affected?
If someone is affected, they should check their mail for a new Medicare card. It’s being sent for free. Also, if they already have a Medicare.gov account, they should log in and look over their details to make sure everything is correct.
If they see anything weird or something they don’t recognize, they should call 1-800-MEDICARE. CMS made it clear that Medicare will never call to ask for personal details, so people should be careful and never share their Medicare number unless they’re at a doctor’s office or with someone official.
