June 6, 2007 -- Attorney General Paul Morrison warns Greensburg area seniors of potential identity theft following the recent tornado. Reports indicate that imposters claiming to have ties to the Medicare Part D program are attempting to gain personal account and PIN information from seniors over the phone.
"Seniors in the Greensburg areas should not share personal information over the phone without first verifying the caller's identity," Morrison said. "Many times, we warn Kansans about the threat of identity theft through stolen social security numbers and credit cards, but there are numerous ways people can be ripped off."
Since the disaster, area pharmacies have been accepting insurance account numbers and PINs in lieu of missing insurance cards. If this information is stolen, seniors could be inappropriately charged for prescriptions they did not need or use.
The Kansas Department on Aging notes that there are currently no legitimate calls being made from the Medicare Part D program regarding account verification.
If seniors believe that they have encountered an imposter, they should contact the Senior Health Insurance Counseling for Kansas (SHICK) program at 1-800-860-5260. If senior consumers think they have become the victim of identity theft they should call the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-432-2310.