The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) mistakenly issued refund checks to about 230,000 Medicare beneficiaries in August, and is now trying to get the word out about how to repay the government. Refunds occurred due to a computer glitch and totaled $50 million, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The average individual refund was $215. The checks were erroneously repaying beneficiaries for their drug plan or Medicare Advantage plan premium. Beneficiaries received the refunds along with their Social Security benefit checks or direct deposits. Persons who received the refunds will not lose coverage, according to CMS.
Those affected will receive a letter from Medicare in early September explaining the error and the procedure for returning the money. Beneficiaries can call a toll-free number for information about repayment options (866-292-8080). CMS has asked those who have already returned their overpayment to call this number and let Medicare know that.
For more information about this error, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
http://www.cms.hhs.gov/partnerships/downloads/PremiumWithholdRefundIssue.pdf
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/08/28/national/w142209D63.DTL&type=politics
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