How To Prevent Medical Identity Theft

It’s a crime that can take months to detect, wreak havoc on your credit and finances and could even leave you with someone else’s unpaid medical bills.

Medical identity theft is becoming more prevalent and involves a person using stolen data to access medical services or drugs, according to Experian.

In some instances, criminals use a person’s confidential information to submit fraudulent claims to insurance companies, providers or agencies for services or equipment that were never rendered.

The impact goes far beyond financial loss. Fixing compromised medical and insurance records can take years, and unresolved errors can result in delayed care or dangerous mistakes. A doctor could give — or withhold — treatment based on medical history details, such as blood type, procedures or diagnoses, that aren’t actually yours.

Medical Identity Breaches Often Go Undetected

Among the reasons the crime is increasing is a rash of data breaches. In 2025, health care data breaches affected about 57 million people, according to the HIPPA Journal.

Medical records provide thieves with a plethora of information, including Social Security numbers, names of the health insurance companies, medical histories and home addresses. From a criminal’s perspective, data from medical identities is 20 to 50 times more valuable than information from a credit card or Social Security number, according to Experian.

Detection is also complicated, because fraudulent charges or claims can get mixed in with real patient accounts, making it hard to isolate them. On average, it takes three months to uncover medical identity fraud, and it can take as long as a year. Often the first indication is when the patient receives a bill for an unpaid medical charge they don’t recognize.

Fortify Your Defenses Against Medical Identity Theft

Here are a few tips to protect yourself against medical identity theft.

• Be extremely cautious about sharing any medical information.
• Ask your medical professionals what steps they are taking to secure patient information.
• Scrutinize every bill you receive, and if you don’t recognize a charge, call the provider.
• Check your credit report regularly, in case an unpaid bill you were not aware of was sent to collections.
• Review your medical records once a year.
• If you suspect fraud, alert the provider and your medical insurance company immediately.

Enrolling in an identity theft protection program such as AAA ProtectMyID, operated by Experian, can help secure your information and notify you of any security breaches. It also provides access to your credit report. The essential plan is free with AAA membership.

Among the ways ProtectMyID guards against medical identity theft and helps you recover in the event of an incident:

• ProtectMyID monitors your accounts for questionable activity, including potential misappropriation of your health insurance information.
• It covers theft to obtain medical care, insurance or submit fake claims.
• Aids in resolving fraud.

Find out everything that is covered by your ProtectMyID plan.

Have you ever been a victim of medical identification theft?

Ellen R. Delisio

Ellen is a content producer for AAA Northeast, covering automotive, finance, public affairs and electric vehicle news. She is a former newspaper reporter with experience writing for print and online publications about everything from higher education to sustainability. She recently returned to her native Long Island after living in Connecticut for 20-plus years, and has never met a beach she didn’t like.