Health care <\/p>\n
Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Susanne Craig The New York Times <\/p>\n
10 hours ago <\/p>\n
J. Emilio Flores \/ New York Times <\/p>\n
Madeleine Mirzayans of Sherman Oaks, Calif., said a man came to her door and asked to help update her Medicare information. <\/p>\n
To the list of problems plaguing President Obamas health care law, add one more fraud. <\/p>\n
With millions of Americans frustrated and bewildered by the trouble-prone federal website for health insurance, con men and unscrupulous marketers are seizing their chance. State and federal authorities report a rising number of consumer complaints, ranging from deceptive sales practices to identity theft, linked to the Affordable Care Act. <\/p>\n
Madeleine Mirzayans was fooled when a man posing as a government official knocked on her door. Barbara Miller and Maevis Ethan were pitched by telemarketers who claimed to work for Medicaid. And Buford Price was almost caught by another trap: websites that look official but are actually bait set by fly-by-night insurance operators. <\/p>\n
Some level of fraud or abuse is predictable with any big government program, and administration officials expected a few bad actors to emerge. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.; Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of health and human services; Edith Ramirez, the chairwoman of the Federal Trade Commission; and other officials met at the White House in September to discuss possible pitfalls. <\/p>\n
But now, the technical failures troubling the HealthCare.gov website, as well as the laws complexity, threaten to make matters worse. Only a tiny fraction of Americans have been affected so far, but state authorities and the F.T.C. are reviewing the issue aggressively. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
See more here: <\/p>\n
Con men prey on confusion over health care act<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Health care Jessica Silver-Greenberg and Susanne Craig The New York Times 10 hours ago J. Emilio Flores \/ New York Times Madeleine Mirzayans of Sherman Oaks, Calif., said a man came to her door and asked to help update her Medicare information. To the list of problems plaguing President Obamas health care law, add one more fraud. Continue reading