Healthcare Fraud

Robocall Scams

Blue Cross Blue Shield Association has received reports that some individuals are receiving robocalls that falsely claim to be made by “Blue Cross Blue Shield.”  These calls may seek to market insurance products or collect personal information from call recipients.  Neither Blue Cross Blue Shield Association nor any of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies licensed to use the Blue Cross® and/or Blue Shield® brands are making these calls.  Licensed Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies will not refer to themselves solely as “Blue Cross,” “Blue Shield” or “Blue Cross Blue Shield” in calls they do make, as each local company must provide information that identifies its corporate or trade name in its communications (for instance, “Blue Cross and Blue Shield of [State]”).

If you get a recorded call from a caller whom you did not authorize to call you, the call is likely fraudulent or malicious and you should hang up immediately.  Do not respond to prompts to “press 1 to speak to the operator or get your name taken off the list,” and do not provide any personal information.  If you respond, you’ll probably get more calls.  It is advisable to block the numbers of the robocalls you receive from calling your cell phone, although these callers may continue to call you from other numbers or use “spoofing” technology that makes the same calls appear to come from different numbers.

To report malicious or suspect robocalls and telemarketers, contact one or all of the following federal agencies:

• The Federal Trade Commission at: https://ftc.gov/
• The Federal Communications Commission at https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc
• The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) at https://www.ic3.gov