Personal Affairs

Here’s How to Avoid COVID-19 Vaccine Scams

Now that the coronavirus vaccine is being deployed to the public, you will need reliable sources of information to stay up to speed on the relevant issues. It’s too much to cover in one article, so this article includes links to the most comprehensive information regarding insurance coverage as well as vaccine procedures and timelines. And remember, scams are rampant — beware of criminals. Medicare and TRICARE cover the vaccine at no cost to you, so if anyone asks you to share your private health care information or pay for access to the vaccine, it’s a scam.
Things to know about scams:

  • You can’t pay to put your name on a list to get the vaccine.
  • You can’t pay to get early access to a vaccine.
  • Don’t share your personal or financial information with anyone who calls, texts, or emails you promising anything related to the vaccine or health care.
  • Hang up the phone or delete any emails or texts that ask you to do anything. Do not click on any attachments or links in emails or texts. Nothing is as it seems. Scam attempts look very real.
Use only reliable sources to get information about the vaccine, like:
  • Medicare (www.medicare.gov/medicare-coronavirus)
  • TRICARE (For TRICARE information specifically regarding vaccines, go here, tricare.mil/HealthWellness/HealthyLiving/Coronavirus/COVID-Vaccine. For one-stop-shop TRICARE information regarding coronavirus, go here, tricare.mil/HealthWellness/HealthyLiving/Coronavirus/Coronavirus-Articles.)
  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov/library/researchguides/2019novelcoronavirus/websites.html)
  • National Institutes of Health (covid19.nih.gov)
  • MOAA (www.moaa.org/content/publications-and-media/news-articles/2020-news-articles/rollout-report-the-covid-19-vaccine-and-dod,-va,-medicare,-and-more/)
 By: Shane Ostrom