PCGNY.net | News Release

CONSULATE WARNS OF SCAM VS. FILAM VETERANS

PHILIPPINE CONSULATE - NEWS RELEASE
6 May 2005

New York, NEW YORK --- The Consulate General of the Philippines in New York today issued a warning on a scam allegedly directed against elderly FilAm veterans.

The scam, which the Consulate learned from the Philippine Consulates in San Francisco and Los Angeles, is allegedly being perpetrated by medical con artists who induce unsuspecting elderly FilAm veterans to give their Medicare numbers in exchange for $100 for participating in a “medical survey” or “clinical testing.” The con artists then use the Medicare numbers they have fraudulently obtained to bill Medicare for health services and, even medical equipment, which the elderly veterans allegedly received. In many cases, the health services that are billed Medicare are not even needed by the veterans.

An example is the case of Bartolome Gorero, 80, and his wife Estelita, who each received a crisp $100 bill for taking a van ride to a sleep clinic in San Jose, where they were asked to lie on beds for four hours with wires attached to their bodies and to watch movies. The clinic operator later billed Medicare $7,950 for sleep studies on the two, who said they have no sleep problems whatsoever.

Another example is Apolonio Ladia, 81, who is physically fit and has no major medical complaints. Yet, several individuals claiming to be medical representatives paid him to go to three Bay area clinics where he underwent 46 medical and laboratory tests – for which the clinic operators later billed Medicare more than $8,500.

Consul General Cecilia Rebong said she has been informed by the Philippine Consulates in San Francisco and Los Angeles that the insidious scam appears to mirror medical fraud rings that have been investigated and prosecuted in Los Angeles and dozens of other cities. She added that while there have so far been no reported cases in the Northeast, “our FilAm veterans in this part of the U.S. ought to be extra vigilant if and when participating in any medical surveys as this could just be another scam. They should never reveal or give their Medicare numbers unless they are sure of the identity and legitimacy of the persons or companies they are dealing with.”