5 THINGS TO KNOW: How to avoid health care cons during the open enrollment period [McAlester News-Capital, Okla.]

Nov. 29—The Better Business Bureau gives information on how to spot and avoid Medicare and health insurance scams during the open enrollment period.

1 Be wary of anyone who contacts you out of the blue.

Healthcare.gov and Medicare provide legitimate help determining which plan is right for you. These people — sometimes called Navigators or Assisters — cannot charge for their support. If someone asks you for payment, it's a scam. You will also need to contact them. They will not call you first.

2 Be wary of free gifts and "health screenings."

Keep a healthy level of skepticism any time a broker offers you free gifts or other special deals. Never sign up with a broker who offers you an expensive sign-up gift in exchange for providing your Medicare ID number or additional personally identifiable information. Other times, brokers offer free "health screenings" to weed out people who are less healthy. This technique is called "cherry picking" and is against Medicare rules.

3 Guard your government-issued numbers.

Never offer your Medicare ID number, Social Security number, health plan info, or banking information to anyone you don't know.

4 Go directly to official websites.

If you want to make changes to your health care plan, go directly to Medicare.gov, Healthcare.gov, or your employer's health insurance provider. Don't click on links in suspicious messages.

5 Contact your employer directly.

If you receive an unexpected email about benefits policies, ask your employer about it before you click on anything to make sure it's legitimate.

If you are unsure whether a call or offer is from Medicare or you gave your personal information to someone claiming to be with Medicare, call 1-800-MEDICARE to report it. If you suspect fraud when signing up for ACA coverage, go to HealthCare.gov or call the Health Insurance Marketplace call center at 800-318-2596.

—Derrick James

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