Fraud Alert - Illinois Senior Medicare Patrol
March 8th, 2021
Chicago Clinic Charges $200 for
COVID-19 Vaccine,
Apologizes for Oversight
According to an ABC7 News report, a Chicago clinic, has come under some scrutiny for charging clients $200 for the COVID-19 vaccine. The price for the vaccine should always be ZERO ($0) dollars for the consumer. Your Medicare or other insurance will be billed and your co-pay is $0. If you do not have insurance, you still should not be billed for this vaccine. The clinic acknowledged this oversight and has gone on to apologize and reimburse clients.

Chicago's Public Health commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said, "I want people in Chicago to hear that they should not be billed directly for receiving a COVID vaccine."

There is a task force of inspectors looking into whether some urgent care centers are charging patients for the vaccine, which would be in violation of the program regulations. 

You can read more about this story here.

If you or someone you know has been charged for the COVID-19 vaccine, please call the Illinois SMP at (800)699-9043.
United Center Vaccination Site to
Open March 9th for Seniors!
The United Center vaccine site will begin to administer a limited number of vaccines on March 9, with a full opening March 10. As of today, all Illinoisans eligible under the state’s Phase 1B+ (including people over 65) are able to schedule appointments 

The United Center site will operate seven days a week for eight weeks and will be able to administer 6,000 shots per day at full capacity! This is a huge step in the vaccine distribution process.

  • To register online, visit Zocdoc.com/vaccine. The web site is projected to handle much higher volume of appointment requests. Zocdoc will show real-time appointment availability and eligible residents will then be able to select a date/time and book an appointment online. Date of birth will be required when booking an appointment to confirm vaccine eligibility.
  • To register by phone, call (312) 746-4835. To help bridge the digital divide, a multi-lingual call center will be available to help seniors make an appointment. This call center will be available from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Given the anticipated high demand for appointments, residents who can use the web site should book their appointments online. While the call center has 200 staffers, those who need to use the call center will very likely experience lengthy wait times.

This site will be open to all Illinois residents, not just those who live in Chicago as well! It is available to those who currently qualify for vaccinations under the current Phase 1B Plus of the state's vaccine rollout plan.

You can read more about this here from NBC Chicago and the Governor's Office.

For more information on the vaccine distribution in Illinois please click here.
Upcoming AgeOptions SMP Outreach Events
Mather Informational Topics 
You can pick one of the two dates available below:
Illinois Senior Medicare Patrol – SMP Basics March 8 at 9:30 a.m.
Illinois Senior Medicare Patrol – SMP Basics March 22 at 9:30 a.m.
Phone number: (855) 880 1246 
Meeting ID: 386 399 7030# 

Olympia Fields Park District
SMP Basics – March 9 at 1:30 pm.
How to read your Medicare Summary Notice – March 16 at 1:30 pm.
Types of Medicare Fraud – March 23 at 1:30 pm.
Tips to Prevent Medicare Fraud – March 30 at 1:30 pm.
Phone Number : 312-626-6799    
Meeting ID: 982 8248 9660#

Latino Alzheimer’s Memory Disorder Alliance 
Conceptos Basicos – 11 de Marzo a las 2:00 pm
Leyendo su Recibo de Medicare – 18 de Marzo a las 2:00 p.m.
Tipos de Fraude – 25 de Marzo a las 2:00 p.m.
Como Prevenir Fraud – 1 de Abril a las 2:00 p.m.
Por Telefono: 312-626-6799
Clave: 934 8991 7485#

Catholic Charities Waukegan (El Centro)
Como prevenir fraude en Medicare – 19 de Marzo a la 1:00 p.m.
Por telefono: 312-626-6799    
Clave: 986 6939 0803#

Ventanilla de Salud del Consulado Mexicano  
Conceptos Basicos del programa de SMP - Viernes 12 de Marzo a las 3 pm.  
Esta es la pagina de Facebook donde podran ver el video: https://www.facebook.com/VDSChicago

Libreria Publica de Bensenville
Conceptos Basicos de SMP y Medicare 101 - 25 de Marzo a las 7:00 pm. 
Por telefono: 312-626-6799
Meeting ID: 922 6862 6107#

Senior Fest 21, A Virtual Expo
Committed resources created to provide community health initiatives and services that address public health. 
Saturday, March 13 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Have a safe and healthy week!

Travis Trumitch
travis.trumitch@ageoptions.org
Please share this Fraud Alert with colleagues, consumers, or other professionals in your area. If you would like to sign up to receive the Fraud Alert directly, visit click here.

This project was supported, in part by grant number 90MPPG0036, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration for Community Living policy.
The Illinois SMP at AgeOptions partners with agencies across the state to empower and assist Medicare beneficiaries, their families, and caregivers to prevent, detect, and report health care fraud, errors, and abuse through outreach, counseling, and education.

Please share this Fraud Alert with colleagues, consumers, or other professionals in your area and visit our website to sign up for our Fraud Alert email list.