by Government Relations Staff

June 30, 2009 — The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the following scam alert on June 18, 2009:

CMS has become aware of a scam where perpetrators are sending faxes to physician offices posing as the Medicare carrier or Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC).

The fax instructs physician staff to respond to a questionnaire to provide an account information update within 48 hours in order to prevent a gap in Medicare payments. The fax may have the CMS logo and/or the contractor logo to enhance the appearance of authenticity.

Medicare FFS providers, including physicians, non-physician practitioners, should be wary of this type of request. If you receive a request for information in the manner described above, please check with your contractor before submitting any information.

Medicare providers should only send information to a Medicare contractor using the address found in the download section of the CMS.gov website or this website.