Hackers hack because they can. They hack to steal YOUR identity. They don’t care  they don’t know you. Whether it is through your email, a spoofed (fake) email requests, even  links to connect from LinkedIn, hackers can add malware or key-logger programs to your computer to scrounge around for you to provide – and what you may consider – protected information.

It’s traumatic when you or a loved one is admitted to a hospital. There’s so much to worry about. However, the protection of your private health care information should not be one of them. Although there has been a rash of celebrity information being compromised during recent admissions to a hospital, you don’t have to have a star status to ensure your health care information is safe.

To make sure your private health information stays that way, here are 3 questions to ask during the admission process:

1. Does your organization do background checks on all employees?

2. Who has access to my information?

3. Where will my records be stored and will they be encrypted?

If the person admitting you  (or the pre – admission process) can’t answer the above questions, ask to speak to a supervisor who has the answers. If he or she doesn’t know, then ask to speak to the Director of Nursing, or Chief Nursing Officer.

While you may feel this over cautious, we are hearing of  Identity Theft Rings run from a hospital by an admissions clerk as in this case in Alabama: Leader of Identity Theft Ring Sentenced to prison.

Obviously an admission in an emergency you can’t do this process.  This may be a reason to consider having Identity Protection and Recovery. If you want to know more  about being proactive instead of reactive connect with me here:    http://www.theidentityadvocate.com/identity-theft-protection.php.

Keep your piece of mind.

Have you thought medical identity theft wouldn’t happen to you? Is your thought “why would anyone want my medical information?” Well, they don’t want your “medical history” —  they want your insurance information. They might be out of work, or have a friend who needs assistance, or belong to an identity theft ring, and is in it for the money they can earn by selling your medical identity! Today it is more valuable then just your social security number.

When your medical information is stolen and used by someone to seek treatment, your own medical history will change. You may receive bills from doctors you have never seen or even heard of. You may discover they have a different blood type, or have cancer. Then to remove the mis-information and change your information back to who ‘you really are’ becomes an arduous task in itself. Also, you might find yourself responsible for bills that are not yours, and this affects your credit rating when it goes to collections!

Be proactive, protect your medical identity  by asking  your physician the following questions:

Does s/he do a complete background check on his employees?

Does s/he encrypt the records in his office?

If you should change physicians, what happens to those records? Does s/he outsource billing and receivables and if so, are they cleared as well. You want to know who is in his office and if there are prying eyes or someone who can walk off with all your information on a device such as a laptop or flash drive with all your electronic health information?

Read this article from Fox Business News and see why your medical information and insurance are a valued resource in the the black market; and why it is so difficult to keep your information PRIVATE:  http://www.foxbusiness.com/on-air/willis-report/blog/2013/05/21/protect-yourself-against-medical-identity-theft..

And then call me or email me for solutions available to  protect and recover your identity in the event that your identity is compromised or stolen

www.theidentityadvocate.com

310-831-4400

The FBI has seen an increase in cyber criminals who use online photo-sharing programs to perpetrate scams and harm victims’ computers. These criminals advertise vehicles online but will not provide pictures in the advertisement. They will send photos on request. Sometimes the photo is a single file sent as an e-mail attachment, and sometimes the victim receives a link to an online photo gallery.

The photos can and often contain malicious software that infects the victim’s computer, directing the user to fake websites that look nearly identical to the real sites where the original advertisement was seen. The cyber criminals run all aspects of these fake websites, including “tech support” or “live chat support” and any “recommended” escrow services. After the victim agrees to purchase the item and makes the payment, the criminals stop responding to correspondence. The victims never receive any merchandise.

The FBI urges consumers to protect themselves when shopping online. Here are a few tips for staying safe:

• Be cautious if you lose an auction on an auction site but the seller contacts you later saying the original bidder fell through.
• Make sure websites are secure and authenticated before you purchase an item online. Use only well-known escrow services.
• Research to determine if a car dealership is real and how long it has been in business.
• Be wary if the price for the item you’d like to buy is severely undervalued; if it is, the item is likely fraudulent.
• Scan files before downloading them to your computer.
• Keep your computer software, including the operating system, updated with the latest patches.
• Ensure your anti-virus software and firewalls are current—they can help prevent malware infections.

If you have fallen victim to this type of scam, file a complaint with the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.

If you need education and resources to protect your identity click on http://www.theidentityadvocate.com/identity-advocate-services.php

Another identity theft issue in Yuma. Just when you think you are safe on your ride to the hospital, maybe in critical condition, now you must worry if your identity has been stolen!!
: | News for Yuma, Imperial Valley, El Centro, AZ

Fake car loans with stolen real identities sold to automobile finance companies for a lump sum. Now 17 counts against perpetrator; see video at:

The following are highlights from significant identity-theft cases. All details are based on court documents.

Memphis Woman Sentenced on Tax Fraud Charges
On Dec. 21, 2012, in Memphis, Tenn., Aundria Bryant-Branch was sentenced to 262 months in prison, three years supervised release, and ordered to pay $690,399 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). According to the indictment, Bryant-Branch orchestrated a tax refund scheme beginning in or about 2006 and continuing until approximately June 10, 2008. Bryant-Branch obtained stolen identification information and a stolen “Warrant Book” from the Memphis Police Department. This book listed individuals with outstanding arrest warrants. Bryant-Branch would give the stolen identification information to others, who then used it to prepare and electronically file false tax returns with the IRS claiming refunds without the taxpayer’s knowledge. These fraudulent returns generated either refund checks from the IRS or Refund Anticipation Loan (RAL) checks from the Bank and Trust of Santa Barbara.

Barbados National Sentenced for Using Stolen Identities to File False Claims for Tax Refund
On Nov. 7, 2012, Chicago, Ill., Andrew J. Watts, a Barbados national, was sentenced to 114 months in prison and ordered to pay $1.7 million in restitution. Watts pleaded guilty on July 10, 2012, to one count of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. According to court documents, between 2007 and 2011, Watts filed false federal income tax returns in the names of deceased taxpayers seeking fraudulent refunds. Watts either signed the name of the deceased taxpayer to the tax return or would falsely list himself as the deceased taxpayer’s representative. As part of the scheme, Watts filed over 470 false federal income tax returns, claiming fraudulent refunds in excess of $120 million. Watts directed the IRS to either mail the refund checks to an address he controlled or to electronically deposit the refund into a bank account under his control.

North Carolina Men Sentenced in Identity Theft Scheme
On Oct. 1, 2012, in Raleigh, N.C., Jeffrey Glenn Toohey and Christopher Fleming were sentenced to prison for their roles in an identity theft scheme. Toohey was sentenced to 125 months in prison, five years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $600 special assessment and $261,354 in restitution. Fleming was sentenced to 30 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay a $300 special assessment and $204,799 in restitution. According to court documents, Toohey fraudulently opened credit card accounts using stolen identities and purchased items using the fraudulent accounts. Further in October 2010, Toohey and Fleming broke into a tax preparation office, stealing over 300 files containing personal information of tax clients. Toohey then filed 2010 tax returns in the names of the clients and directed the tax refunds to either debit cards, which were mailed to addresses which Toohey and Fleming knew, were vacant, or to bank accounts that were opened, using fraudulent and unauthorized information. When the tax refund proceeds were received, Toohey and Fleming used the funds to purchase various items.

The latest information on Identity Theft enforcement efforts and individual cases are available on IRS.gov.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: HHS Press Office
(202) 690-6343
Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services announce record-breaking recoveries resulting from joint efforts to combat health care fraud

Government Teams Recovered $4.2 Billion in FY 2012

WASHINGTON – Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released a new report showing that for every dollar spent on health care-related fraud and abuse investigations in the last three years, the government recovered $7.90. This is the highest three-year average return on investment in the 16-year history of the Health Care Fraud and Abuse (HCFAC) Program.

The government’s health care fraud prevention and enforcement efforts recovered a record $4.2 billion in taxpayer dollars in Fiscal Year (FY) 2012, up from nearly $4.1 billion in FY 2011, from individuals and companies who attempted to defraud federal health programs serving seniors and taxpayers or who sought payments to which they were not entitled. Over the last four years, the administration’s enforcement efforts have recovered $14.9 billion, up from $6.7 billion over the prior four-year period. Since 1997, the HCFAC Program has returned more than $23 billion to the Medicare Trust Funds.

These findings, released today in the annual HCFAC Program report, are a result of President Obama making the elimination of fraud, waste and abuse, particularly in health care, a top priority for the administration.

The success of this joint Department of Justice and HHS effort was made possible by the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT), created in 2009 to prevent fraud, waste and abuse in the Medicare and Medicaid programs and to crack down on individuals and entities that are abusing the system and costing American taxpayers billions of dollars. These efforts to reduce fraud will continue to improve with new tools and resources provided by the Affordable Care Act.

“This was a record-breaking year for the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services in our collaborative effort to crack down on health care fraud and protect valuable taxpayer dollars,” said Attorney General Holder. “In the past fiscal year, our relentless pursuit of health care fraud resulted in the disruption of an array of sophisticated fraud schemes and the recovery of more taxpayer dollars than ever before. This report demonstrates our serious commitment to prosecuting health care fraud and safeguarding our world-class health care programs from abuse.”

“Our historic effort to take on the criminals who steal from Medicare and Medicaid is paying off: We are gaining the upper hand in our fight against health care fraud,” said Secretary Sebelius. “This fight against fraud strengthens the integrity of our health care programs and helps us fulfill our commitment to our seniors.”

About $4.2 billion stolen or otherwise improperly obtained from federal health care programs was recovered and returned to the Medicare Trust Funds, the Treasury and others in FY 2012. This is an unprecedented achievement for the HCFAC Program, a joint Justice Department and HHS effort to coordinate federal, state and local law enforcement activities to fight health care fraud and abuse.

The administration is also using tools authorized by the Affordable Care Act to fight fraud, including enhanced screenings and enrollment requirements, increased data sharing across the government, expanded recovery efforts for overpayments and greater oversight of private insurance abuses.

Since 2009, the Justice Department and HHS have improved their coordination through HEAT and increased the number of Medicare Fraud Strike Force teams to nine. The Justice Department’s enforcement of the civil False Claims Act and the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act have produced similar record-breaking results. These combined efforts coordinated under HEAT have expanded local partnerships and helped educate Medicare beneficiaries about how to protect themselves against fraud. In FY 2012, the two departments continued their series of regional fraud prevention summits, and the Justice Department hosted a training conference for federal prosecutors, FBI agents, HHS Office of Inspector General agents and others.

The strike force teams use advanced data analysis techniques to identify high-billing levels in health care fraud hot spots so that interagency teams can target emerging or migrating schemes as well as with chronic fraud by criminals masquerading as health care providers or suppliers. In July, Attorney General Holder and Secretary Sebelius announced the launch of a ground-breaking partnership among the federal government, state officials, leading private health insurance organizations and other health care anti-fraud groups to share information and best practices to improve detection of and prevent payments to scams that cut across public and private payers.

In FY 2012, the Justice Department opened 1,131 new criminal health care fraud investigations involving 2,148 potential defendants, and a total of 826 defendants were convicted of health care fraud-related crimes during the year. The department also opened 885 new civil investigations.

The strike force coordinated a takedown in May 2012 that involved the highest number of false Medicare billings in the history of the strike force program. The takedown involved 107 individuals, including doctors and nurses, in seven cities, who were charged for their alleged participation in Medicare fraud schemes, involving about $452 million in false billings. As a part of the May 2012 takedown, HHS also suspended or took other administrative action against 52 providers using authority under the health care law to suspend payments until an investigation is complete.

Strike force operations in the nine cities where teams are based resulted in 117 indictments, informations and complaints involving charges against 278 defendants who allegedly billed Medicare more than $1.5 billion in fraudulent schemes. In FY 2012, 251 guilty pleas and 13 jury trials were litigated, with guilty verdicts against 29 defendants, in strike force cases. The average prison sentence in these cases was more than 48 months.

The new authorities under the Affordable Care Act granted to HHS and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) were instrumental in clamping down on fraudulent activity in health care. In FY 2012, CMS began the process of screening all 1.5 million Medicare-enrolled providers through the new Automated Provider Screening system that quickly identifies ineligible and potentially fraudulent providers and suppliers prior to enrollment or revalidation to verify the data. As a result, nearly 150,000 ineligible providers have already been eliminated from Medicare’s billing system.

CMS also established the Command Center to improve health care-related fraud detection and investigation, drive innovation and help reduce fraud and improper payments in Medicare and Medicaid.

From May 2011 through the end of 2012, more than 400,000 providers were subject to the new screening requirements and nearly 150,000 lost the ability to bill the Medicare program due to the Affordable Care Act requirements and other proactive initiatives.

The Department of Justice and HHS also continued their successes in civil health care fraud enforcement during FY 2012. The Justice Department’s Civil Division Fraud Section, with their colleagues in U.S. Attorneys’ offices throughout the country, obtained settlements and judgments of more than $3 billion in FY 2012 under the False Claims Act (FCA). These matters included unlawful pricing by pharmaceutical manufacturers, illegal marketing of medical devices and pharmaceutical products for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Medicare fraud by hospitals and other institutional providers, and violations of laws against self-referrals and kickbacks. This marked the third year in a row that more than $2 billion has been recovered in FCA health care matters. Additionally, the Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch, working with U.S. Attorneys’ offices, obtained nearly $1.5 billion in fines and forfeitures, and obtained 14 convictions in matters pursued under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.

The HCFAC annual report is available at www.oig.hhs.gov/publications/hcfac.asp. For more information on the joint DOJ-HHS Strike Force activities, visit: www.StopMedicareFraud.gov/.

For more information on the fraud prevention accomplishments under the Affordable Care Act visit: www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/2012/02/medicare-fraud02142012a.html.