Every fall, health insurance shopping season brings fake navigators, too-good-to-be-true plans, and calls asking for your Medicare number. Here’s how to shop safely.
The phone rings. “Hi, I’m calling about your health coverage for next year. I can get you a plan for $29 a month with everything covered. I just need your Medicare number to check your eligibility.”
$29 a month sounds amazing. Which is exactly the problem.
The real health insurance marketplace is a store with one front door: HealthCare.gov or your state’s own marketplace site. Anyone calling you out of the blue with a “special deal” is selling out of the back of a van.
Open enrollment is the window each year when you can sign up for or change your health plan. Medicare’s runs from mid October to early December, and the marketplace usually opens November 1. Lots of people are shopping at the same time, a little confused, and worried about cost. That’s a perfect setup for fakes.
“Sign up today or lose your coverage” is the oldest trick in the book. Real deadlines are posted on official sites weeks ahead. Urgency is the tell.
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