The Federal Trade Commission is warning that scammers sometimes pay to land at the top of search results during Medicare and Marketplace open enrollment. Its advice is short: type the website name in directly, scroll past the paid ads and look for the .gov ending.
The warning matters most for people shopping for a 2027 health or drug plan this fall. A search result that looks official can lead to a copycat site, and the cost can be a plan that is not real insurance or a stolen Medicare identity.
How a paid ad can look like the real thing
In its consumer alert of September 28, 2026, the FTC says that scammers and dishonest businesses sometimes pay to appear at the top of search results. The alert is credited to the agency’s Bureau of Consumer Protection staff and says health insurance scams happen all year but pick up during open enrollment for Medicare and the Marketplace.
The second trick is the web address itself. The FTC says bad actors often use addresses that look similar to government website addresses. Following one of those links or a phone number in a scam ad can lead to paying for a “scammy plan” that is not health insurance, or to medical identity theft.
That combination is what makes the season risky. A paid ad sits above the real result, and a lookalike address can pass a quick glance on a phone screen.
The two steps the FTC gives
First, type the name of the website directly into the search engine instead of clicking an ad. For Medicare, the FTC points to Medicare.gov. For Marketplace plans, it points to HealthCare.gov.
Second, scroll past the paid ads and look for the .gov ending. Small “Ad” or “Sponsored” labels mark paid results, and an address that ends in .gov belongs to a government site. A copycat will not end that way.
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The dates make the timing concrete. Medicare.gov says open enrollment runs now to December 7, and it started October 15. HealthCare.gov says Marketplace open enrollment starts November 1.
HealthCare.gov adds a plain reminder on its home page: share sensitive information only on official, secure websites, and note that secure .gov sites show a lock or “https://.” A lock icon alone proves little, which is why the FTC pairs the .gov ending with typing the name in by hand.
Two different phone numbers for two different enrollments
The alert sits alongside a September 29, 2026 roundtable on Medicare and healthcare scams that the FTC held with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and the Senior Medicare Patrol.
The alert lists a separate official number for each enrollment, and mixing them up is a common reason a caller lands in the wrong place. For Medicare, the number is 800-633-4227. For the Marketplace, it is 800-318-2596, which HealthCare.gov also lists for questions.
Anyone who needs a person rather than a website has free options. The FTC names the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, which offers one-on-one counseling from a trusted, unbiased source at 877-839-2675, and the local Senior Medicare Patrol.
The Senior Medicare Patrol helps beneficiaries, families and caregivers prevent, detect and report health care fraud, errors and abuse, and lists a toll-free line at 877-808-2468. People shopping for Marketplace coverage can use the Find Local Help option on HealthCare.gov.
If details already went into a site that looked right
The FTC says anyone who suspects a health insurance scam can tell the agency at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and should also tell their state attorney general. For Medicare scams, it says to report them at Medicare.gov or by calling 800-633-4227.
Reporting does not undo a handover. A Medicare number, a Social Security number or a bank account typed into a copycat form is already out, and the risk the FTC names is medical identity theft. The realistic follow-up is to watch Medicare statements for services that were never received, and to lock down the other numbers that were entered.
Plan changes made through Medicare.gov, the 800-633-4227 line or a SHIP counselor are the safe route. A caller or ad that pushes someone to decide quickly is a reason to stop and use one of the official numbers above instead.
What stays the same
The real tools are one typed address away. Medicare.gov’s home page invites people to find and compare 2027 health and drug plans, and the SHIP counseling listed above is local, one-on-one and at no cost to the person asking. Nothing about open enrollment requires clicking through a paid ad to reach either one.
The FTC alert gives no dollar losses or complaint counts, so it does not say how common the paid-ad trick is. It also does not say that every ad is a scam, only that some paid placements are, which is why the advice is to skip the ads altogether and go straight to the .gov address.
For households, the habit is simple. Type the name, look for the ending, and use the official number for the right enrollment. Anyone who is unsure can ask a SHIP counselor before sharing a Medicare number with anyone.
Gave a Medicare number to a site that may not be real?
A Medicare number or a Social Security number typed into a look-alike site cannot be taken back, and the first hours decide how much damage follows. Waiting to see whether anything happens is how a stolen identity turns into a fake plan and bills nobody ordered.
The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit is built for that moment. It includes the free credit-freeze steps, a first-hour recovery plan and a fraud evidence and report log, so each report to the FTC and Medicare is written down in one place.
More Financial Reading
- 21 Ways to Stretch a $2,087 Social Security Check
- 15 Places to Find Your Share of the $4.25 Billion States Give Back
- 17 Medicare Money Moves Now That Part D Caps at $2,400
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
