Is this Medicare letter real? How to tell a real notice from a scam or an ad
By the Folkswise team · Updated · 5 min read · How we write these guides
Older adults get a lot of mail with “Medicare” on the envelope. Some of it is important, a lot of it is advertising, and some of it is a scam. You can sort most of it in a minute if you know what real Medicare sends.
What real Medicare mail looks like
- Medicare Summary Notice: every 4 months, if your parent has Original Medicare and had services. It says “This is not a bill.”
- The “Medicare & You” handbook: once a year, in the fall.
- A Medicare card: only when your parent first enrolls or asks for a replacement. Cards are free.
- Letters from your parent's own Medicare Advantage or drug plan, such as the Annual Notice of Change each fall. These come from the plan, by name.
- Letters about Medicare premiums often come from Social Security, not Medicare.
Ads that look official
Insurance companies and brokers send a lot of mail during the fall enrollment season, often with words like “Medicare benefits update” or “important notice” and designs that look like government mail. They're usually legal, but they're selling something. Many include small print saying they're not connected with or endorsed by the government or the federal Medicare program. If you see that, it's an ad, and your parent doesn't need to act on it.
Red flags for a scam
- It asks for a Medicare number, Social Security number or bank details, or asks your parent to “verify” them.
- It asks for payment, especially by gift card, wire transfer, cryptocurrency or a payment app.
- It threatens that benefits or a card will be cancelled unless your parent acts right away.
- It offers something “free” in exchange for a Medicare number: braces, medical equipment, genetic tests, a new card.
- The phone number or website in the letter isn't the one on your parent's real Medicare card or Medicare.gov.
How to check a letter safely
- Don't call the number or visit the website in the letter.
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), the number on your parent's real Medicare card, and ask whether the letter is genuine.
- For a letter from a plan, call the member services number on your parent's plan card.
- For a letter that says it's from Social Security, call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213.
- Keep the letter and envelope. They're useful if you report it.
If it's a scam
- Report it to 1-800-MEDICARE and to the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov.
- Your local Senior Medicare Patrol can help: smpresource.org or 1-877-808-2468.
- If your parent already shared their Medicare number, tell 1-800-MEDICARE, and watch the next Medicare Summary Notices for services they never received.
- If they shared bank or card details, call the bank right away.
Common questions
- Does Medicare send letters asking for your Medicare number?
- Medicare already has your parent's number and won't ask for it out of the blue. Treat any letter, call or text asking for it with suspicion, and check by calling 1-800-MEDICARE.
- Is a “Medicare benefits” mailer from an insurance company a scam?
- Usually it's an ad, not a scam. Look for small print saying it's not connected with the government. Your parent doesn't have to respond, and shouldn't share personal details with a company that contacted them first.
- Does Medicare charge for a new card?
- No. Medicare cards are free. Anyone asking for money for a card is running a scam.