FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Friday, Feb. 16, 2024

Contact: Tony Mangan, Communications Director, 605-773-6878

PIERRE, S.D. – South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley is warning the public to be careful about telephone calls they receive threatening to take away a person’s Medicare benefits.

The South Dakota Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division has received calls from citizens in recent weeks who say they have received telephone calls from scammers purporting to be from Medicare. The callers will demand the person to provide their Medicare number and if not, threaten to stop their benefits.

“This is not a new scam, but it is a relentless one,” said Attorney General Jackley. “These scammers will do anything they can to convince the person to disclose personal or financial information, including their Medicare numbers. Please remember that the official Medicare office does not call people.”

The Consumer Protection Division recommends that consumers:

*** Never provide their financial or personal information to someone via the telephone.

*** If they receive such a call from a number that does not show up on caller ID, hang up and contact the businesses directly using a known number, not the number showing up on caller ID. 

*** Never accept back, knee or wrist braces that are mailed to them, but that they have not ordered. Medicare will require the consumer to pay for the brace even if they didn’t order it.

Consumers who believe they may have been a victim of any type of scam should contact the Attorney General’s Office’s Consumer Protection Division at 1-800-300-1986.

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