Florida has become a magnet for Medicare fraud — with residents’ Medicare identities stolen and sold on the dark web in bulk for $8 apiece to bilk the government out of billions.
Georgia State University professor David Maimon and his Evidence-Based Cybersecurity Research Group have been investigating the trend, one he says is a huge problem in Florida. He’s produced a report on it — How Floridians Identities Are Being Used To Fuel Medicare Fraud .
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“It’s a combination of the older population, the fact that you have a lot of health care facilities and the fact that you have a lot of criminal groups working there,” he told Moneywise. “It’s the perfect storm.”
Maimon also serves as Head of Fraud Insights at SentiLink , a firm that helps financial institutions combat identity fraud. He says there are numerous older Floridians with healthy bank accounts, a prime target for health-fraud crime rings.
Maimon talked to Moneywise how the criminals obtain and use stolen Medicare identities to commit fraud, what authorities are doing it — and how people can protect themselves.
It’s easy for criminals to source victims’ Medicare identities through breaches at health care facilities. Take for example, a November 2024 data breach of the Retina Group of Florida, which potentially compromised the information of 153,000 patients.
Medicare fraudsters also approach victims directly via email, text or phone calls, impersonating Medicare staff, insurers, pharmacies or medical suppliers to glean sensitive information.
Maimon and his team have seen stolen Medicare identities for sale on , Telegram and WhatsApp, going for as little as $8 apiece if you buy 1,000. That sounds like a cheap price to pay for someone’s identity, but Maimon says it’s a premium rate.
Identity thieves pay as little as $2 apiece to gain access to standard identifiers — things like people’s names, date of birth, Social Security numbers and phone numbers.
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Maimon says they pay more for stolen Medicare IDs because that gives them access to all of a victim’s standard identifiers plus their Medicare number — opening the door to Medicare fraud, like falsely charging Medicare for procedures or doctor visits that never took place.
In May, three Florida men were sentenced to prison for their roles in a fraud case involving $6.9 million in false Medicare claims. Court documents show the trio owned and operated two fraudulent durable medical equipment companies and paid kickbacks and bribes to an offshore company in exchange for the identities of real-life Medicare beneficiaries and fraudulent doctors orders.
False claims were then submitted to Medicare for things that were either unnecessary or ineligible for reimbursement.
Tampa Bay 28 reported on the victim of a similar crime. The only way she discovered her name and identity were stolen and used to bilk Medicare was when she saw a charge for equipment pop up on her Medicare monthly statement.
“Which I did not order, did not receive, never heard of, never heard of the doctor whose name was on it,” she told the news outlet.
Too often, victims don’t check their Medicare statements and don’t realize their identities have been stolen, Maimon said. After all, the money for fraudulent claims doesn’t come out of their bank account — it comes out of Medicare’s.
They’re more likely to notice if the fraudsters try to open a bank account or get a credit card. That’s when money does come out of their pockets or their credit reports take a hit.
Maimon’s report includes the experience of two Florida men — one 76, the other 81 — whose identities were stolen in a 2025 data breach. Not only were their Medicare accounts billed for fake services, their information was used to apply for credit cards, open phone lines and even open a bank account.
In April, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a crackdown on health care fraud. A new federal Fraud Division will oversee a Health Care Fraud Unit with task forces across the country.
Maimon says there are more solutions the government could adopt to reduce Medicare fraud — including introducing extra steps for Medicare beneficiaries to verify their identities before Medicare or Medicaid payments are received.
In the meantime, he says, the most important protection is vigilance. Here are his tips:
Laura Boast is an Associate Editor with Moneywise.com and a lifelong content creator who has reached international audiences at Discovery, CBC, Blue Ant Media, Bond Brand Loyalty and more.
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