Financial identity theft may dominate the headlines, yet there is a bigger threat that goes beyond what’s in your wallet or bank account.
It’s medical identity theft, up 20 percent since last year. Crooks use your insurance or personal information to get treatment or medication, or to submit false billings in your name. And unlike credit card fraud –in which card issuers eat most, if not all, of the bogus charges—there are no such protections with medical identity theft.
Victims often have to pay (36% in 2013 incurred an average of $18,660 in out of pocket costs). Others lose their health insurance or have to pay higher premiums to restore it. Last year, nearly half of all identity breaches in the US were medical-related.
You can’t prevent things such as data breaches or employee theft. But there are some things you can do to help safeguard your information.
Read all correspondence from your insurance carrier.
Guard your health insurance card and number as carefully as you would a credit card.
Don’t routinely carry your Medicare card, as it has your social security number on it.
Avoid unfamiliar health fairs or storefronts offering free screenings that require your insurance information.
About Cleansing Water, Inc.
Cleansing Water, Inc. is a Warrenton, Virginia home health care agency offering professional geriatric care and serving seniors, individuals recovering from surgery, individuals with long-term disabilities, and other clients throughout Fauquier, Culpeper, Gainesville, Haymarket, Middleburg, Prince William, Rappahannock and other Piedmont Virginia communities. We provide in-home companions, certified nursing assistants, and geriatric care managers to assist with the tasks of daily living, monitor health and medications, and ensure clients are well cared for, physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
For more information about Cleansing Water’s short-term and long-term home health care services, Call (540) 341-0212 or our toll-free number, (866) 294-4665, to schedule a consultation and discuss your geriatric care and home health care options. You can also visit CleansingWater.com for more information.