Michigan regulators are warning Medicare enrollees to watch for callers who fake a trusted caller ID and for mail built to look like it came from the government. The state’s Department of Insurance and Financial Services and its Department of Health and Human Services issued the warning on Oct. 12. It lands just ahead of Medicare open enrollment, which runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7.
The tactics the state named
In a joint press release, the two departments said scammers can make a call appear to come from a recognized business or a government agency. That is spoofed caller ID, and a name on a phone screen proves nothing.
The release also flagged look-alike mail. Mailings that resemble government communications often come from private companies, the departments said, with disclaimers in small print. A letter that looks official may be a sales pitch.
So how can an enrollee tell a real call or letter from a fake one? Start with who made contact. The release says Medicare’s federal administrator, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, will never call or visit a home, and that agents cannot claim to be from Medicare or to be endorsed by it. If a call or visit claims to come from Medicare, the safe move is to hang up and call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) directly, rather than the number that made contact.
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DIFS Director Anita Fox said open enrollment “opens the door for bad actors” and urged people never to share information with unexpected contacts.
The release names three routes for unwanted contact: callers, home visitors and postcards claiming a Medicare connection, especially ones asking for personal information or a Medicare number. All should be treated as scams. Each one starts with the scammer rather than the enrollee, which is the common thread the departments want people to notice. A real plan question usually begins with the enrollee picking up the phone or sitting down with a counselor.
One false claim to watch for
The departments singled out a pressure line: the claim that coverage will end unless the person joins a prescription drug plan. They called that false, because Part D is voluntary. A caller who says Medicare coverage is at risk unless someone enrolls on the spot is not describing a real rule.
Another point from the release cuts against a common trick. A Medicare ID number is only needed when a person enrolls in a plan, and plans can be compared without it, including on Medicare.gov’s plan finder. Anyone who asks for that number before a person has chosen a plan is asking too early. A caller who needs it up front is working from a script, not from an enrollment.
Who to call for real help
The release points Michiganders to several free lines. MI Options, the state’s counseling program, can be reached at 800-803-7174. MDHHS Acting Director Amy Epkey urged families who need help with plan options or enrollment to call, noting that “Certified counselors are available to provide free counseling.”
For scam reports and questions, the release lists the Michigan Senior Medicare Patrol at 844-677-6424 and the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Team at 517-335-7599. The DIFS consumer hotline is 877-999-6442, open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The DIFS number is a general consumer line, not a Medicare line, so it suits complaints and insurance questions. Complaints can be filed online with DIFS at michigan.gov/DIFScomplaints. The Attorney General also takes consumer complaints through a form on its website.
Why the timing matters
Medicare open enrollment runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, 2026, and the state’s warning is built around that window. Enrollees are choosing or changing plans in those weeks, which gives impostors a plausible reason to call or mail.
The release also lists several changes in the 2026 Medicare picture that may prompt questions: higher Part B premiums and base Part D premiums, the first round of negotiated prices for several high-cost drugs, and a Medicare Prescription Payment Plan that now renews automatically each year unless the enrollee opts out. Real plan questions have real answers at Medicare.gov and on the phone lines above.
The warning is aimed at people already on Medicare and at those about to join, and the state asks all of them to treat the same few signs as a stop signal: an unexpected contact, a request for a Medicare number, and pressure to act fast. Fox’s point that open enrollment “opens the door for bad actors” explains why the state issued it before the window opened rather than after.
The open question for each enrollee is whether a given call or letter started with the enrollee or with a stranger. Under the state’s guidance, a contact that started with a stranger and asks for a Medicare number should not get one.
Got a call or letter that claims to be Medicare?
The cost of a wrong answer is not limited to a Medicare number. A caller who gets one piece of personal information can often go after bank logins, credit and tax accounts next.
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
