So we’ve all heard of identity theft, but have you ever heard of medical identity theft? Pam Dixon the executive director of World Privacy Forum defines it as an individual or a group of individuals that use another person’s identity in order to get medical supplies or services.
Although this type of theft can be committed by someone you know it is generally done by someone inside a business. These people have access to all your files and other people such as crime rings, ID theft rings and individuals will pay them big money for your information.
It’s hard to protect yourself from medical identity theft but there are some steps you can take. Not only should you protect your SSN but also your health record number. Don’t leave it where anyone can get it and don’t let other people use your number it can cause dangerous changes to your health record. Also every time you or your children visit the doctor you should request your health records. Requesting you health care files can be done right there at the doctor’s office, it will take 30-60 days to receive those files and cost between $1-$20. This won’t prevent anyone from stealing your medical identity but it will help to have a hard copy of your files for the recovery process.
Dixon says, that most people never even know that they are victims of medical identity theft. Those that do find out the hard way. People receive bills for medical services they never received, collection notices for hospital stays and surgery they haven’t had, notices that they have met their insurance cap and worst of all some people get arrested or have their children taken by Social Services. That’s why it’s important to ask for copies of your medical records.
So how do you get your medical identity back? Recovering your identity can be difficult, all hospitals and agencies will treat you differently. The first step you should take to show you are serious is filing a police report. This could help to protect you down the road. If you are having trouble getting a copy of your medical records after a theft obtain a copy of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, to learn your rights under the law. Unfortunately under HIPAA you have no legal right to demand a complete deletion of anything from your medical file even if it’s fraudulent information. The only thing you can do is have your records amended and have notations put in. Getting bill collectors to leave you alone is also difficult. If hospitals and providers are not cooperative the collectors won’t care that it was fraud and they’ll expect you to pay.
All in all trying to recover you medical identity can take years and in some case people never recover. It all depends on how cooperative you hospitals and service providers are. So remember to keep up on your files and keep your medical number to yourself.
Web resources
- This blog has an article which lays out the dangers of being a victim of medical identity theft, such as credit issues as well as reaching the point where you can be uninsured or even unemployed in the future.
- This site provides you with steps to keep yourself protected from being a victim of medical identity theft.
