Beneficiary Privacy and Conflict of Interest

Protecting Beneficiary Privacy

As a SHICK counselor, you will have access to beneficiaries’ health information as well as personal identifying information like Medicare numbers and Social Security Numbers. You must handle this information carefully and keep it confidential to protect beneficiaries from fraud, identity theft, health-based discrimination, and other potential problems.

• Only collect the information you need to provide the help the beneficiary has asked for (for example, you don't need a list of medications to help someone enroll in a Medigap plan).
• Only share beneficiary information with people or agencies who are directly involved in providing the help the beneficiary has asked for (like a Part D plan, for example).
• Don't keep beneficiary information on a laptop or in a file that you take out of the office with you.
• Don't leave beneficiary information out on a desk or up on a computer screen where it can be seen by others.
• Conduct counseling sessions in private where personal information shared by the beneficiary won’t be overheard by others.
• If you believe beneficiary information has been lost, stolen or misused, contact your SHICK Coordinator immediately.
• If you believe a beneficiary has been the victim of fraud or identity theft, contact your SHICK Coordinator the Kansas SMP Coordinator immediately.

Conflict of Interest

SHICK counselors are trusted resources for Medicare beneficiaries. To maintain that trust, counselors cannot be allowed to profit in any way from their contacts with beneficiaries. SHICK has adopted several rules to ensure that no volunteer has a conflict of interest that would prevent him or her from providing unbiased counseling.

• Anyone who is currently associated with the insurance industry is prohibited from being a SHICK volunteer counselor.
• Anyone who could use their position as a SHICK counselor to solicit business from beneficiaries is prohibited from being a SHICK volunteer.
• If a SHICK Coordinator is unclear about whether a conflict of interest exists, the Coordinator should request a ruling from the SHICK Director.
• Potential volunteers cannot take SHICK training until the Coordinator or Director has determined that no conflict of interest exists.
• People who work for organizations that serve Medicare beneficiaries may be SHICK volunteers as long as they do not use their position to solicit business of any kind.

SHIP Special Access to 1-800-MEDICARE

A SHIP-only number has been established that will allow you to reach customer service representatives at 1-800-MEDICARE. That SHIP number is 1-888-647-6701.

Important: This dedicated phone number for calling Medicare is only for SHIP and SMP team members with CMS Unique IDs. It is not to be shared with the general public.

SHIP counselors with Unique IDs are eligible to use the SHIP number. The counselors with Unique IDs are uploaded from STARS to the CMS Unique ID database at 1-800-MEDICARE. It is important to note that these are not instantaneous uploads and there could be a delay of a few weeks between assigning a new Unique ID and having the system recognize that ID.

To use your CMS Unique ID with Medicare, follow these steps:

Call 1-888-647-6701. An automated voice will greet you and ask you to enter your Unique ID number.

Note: Using this phone number in conjunction with your CMS Unique ID gives you a priority position in 1-800-Medicare’s queue of callers. When call volumes are high, such as during Medicare’s fall Open Enrollment Period (OEP), wait times might still apply.

Enter your CMS Unique ID number. If you enter your CMS Unique ID incorrectly or enter an invalid CMS Unique ID, you will hear the regular menu of options presented to all callers who call 1-800-Medicare. If you enter your number correctly, you will be able to select from the following menu options:

• Press 1 for General Medicare issues (This includes Part D questions or plan enrollments)
• Press 2 for a doctor's service or hospital visit
• Press 3 for questions about medical supplies
• Press 4 for help using the new Plan Finder Tool

Note: CMS says the efficiency in this system relies on you selecting the appropriate option from this menu. It is designed to be very short and to-the-point. It is purposely not as long and descriptive as the menus for accessing CSRs through the public 1-800- MEDICARE number, as CMS assumes SHIP and SMP team members can use the shorthand menus described above. If you do not choose the appropriate menu option, you will not see increased efficiency from the system.

Be ready to provide your CMS Unique ID number to the Customer Service Representative (CSR) who answers and have pertinent beneficiary information ready. In order to verify that the CSR is speaking about the correct beneficiary, the CSR cannot speak to the CMS Unique ID user unless the user has at least two of the following pieces of information:

• Beneficiary name as it appears on the Medicare card
• Medicare number
• Medicare Part A and/or Part B effective dates
• Beneficiary date of birth
• Beneficiary address