Physicians and other health care practitioners are increasingly at risk of being targeted by scams, including impersonation scams where criminals pose as law enforcement or government officials to extort money or steal medical or personal information. It is important to remain vigilant to protect yourself, your patients, and your practice. Below are some common scams to which the Michigan State Medical Society (MSMS) has been alerted.
Michigan Board of Medicine Suspicious License Activity
A scammer claiming to be from the Michigan Board of Medicine called a physician, identified themselves, provided an identification number, and stated that there was concern about activity under the physician’s professional license.
Important: Neither the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, nor the Boards of Medicine or Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery, will contact licensees by phone.
Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Scam Alert
The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) has identified fraudulent emails impersonating LARA officials. These emails may reference “Action Required – LARA Enforcement Notice #83700” and request signatures or confidential information.
- Do NOT click links or share personal data.
- Be cautious of emails that create urgency or request confidential actions.
- Verify communications via official channels: Michigan.gov/LARA
- If you suspect fraud, report it immediately to LARA-Safety@michigan.gov
Please note: This email address should NOT be used to submit a complaint, to inquire about the status of your license or certificate, to report a payment issue, or to report fraud involving another department. Messages that do not involve LARA-related fraud issues will not receive a response from LARA-Safety@michigan.gov. For information on matters not involving fraud, please visit LARA’s Contact Us page.
Important: LARA will never ask you to provide your credit card numbers or other personal information over the phone, by text, email, or letter. Please visit their IT Security & Data Protection page for more information on how to identify scams and report suspicious activity.
Medicare Fraud Scheme Involving Phishing Fax Requests
Fraudsters are attempting to defraud physicians by claiming to need information as part of a Medicare audit. In 2025, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services posted the following alert on its Crushing Fraud, Waste, & Abuse website:
CMS has identified a fraud scheme targeting Medicare providers and suppliers. Scammers are impersonating CMS and sending phishing fax requests for medical records and documentation, on CMS letterhead, falsely claiming to be part of a Medicare audit.
Important: CMS does not initiate audits by requesting medical records via fax.
Protect your information: If you receive a suspicious request, do not respond. If you think you got a fraudulent or questionable request, work with your Medical Review Contractor to confirm if it is real.
Letters Threatening Suspension of Professional License or Report to Regulators
In the state of Washington, a fraud ring was preying on physicians and health care practitioners. The scammers sent letters pretending to be officials or agents from the Washington Medical Commission, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and state Department of Health and indicating that the physician or practitioner was in trouble with regulators or the law and may be in danger of discipline or loss of license. The scam involved the use of personal information in an attempt to feign legitimacy in order to exploit the recipients for money or information to execute scams on others.
Important: If you receive a communication making accusations and threats, asking you to pay money, demanding personal information like a bank account or social security number, and/or threatening to restrict your privileges or report you to regulators, do not immediately respond to the contact listed. Instead, contact LARA’s Bureau of Professional Licensing at 517-241-0199 [Press 3 when prompted] to confirm whether the communication is a scam.
Fraudulent Tax Filings and Identity Theft
Unfortunately, the incidence of fraudulent tax filings continues to grow and Michigan physicians are not immune. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) encourages you “to be alert to possible tax-related identity theft if you receive a notice from the IRS or learn from your tax professional that:
- More than one tax return was filed for you;
- You owe additional tax, have a refund offset or have had collection actions taken against you for a year you did not file a tax return;
- IRS records indicate you received more wages than you actually earned or
- Your state or federal benefits were reduced or cancelled because the agency received information reporting an income change.”
Visit the IRS Identity Theft Central for more information on how to prevent and report tax-related identity theft.
Important: This IRS will never send direct messages via social media and will not text you unless you have given them permission to do so. Additionally, the IRS will never call to demand payment now, threaten arrest or inform you of a refund. Visit the IRS website, Report fake IRS, Treasury or tax-related emails and messages, to learn how to report suspicious IRS, Treasury and tax-related emails, texts, social media accounts, phone calls and letters.
If you have further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact Stacey Hettiger, MSMS Senior Director of Advocacy and Payor Relations, at shettiger@msms.org or 517-336-5766.