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John Morris, a Deputy District Attorney for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, has worked as a criminal prosecutor for over 22 years.  He has prosecuted over 100 jury trials including more than 30 murders.  He worked in the Hard-Core Gang Division for 9 years, prosecuting gang homicides.  He has also prosecuted robberies, assaults, carjackings and illegal drug sales, and has published 5 articles on legal issues including witness protection.  He is now Head Deputy of the Healthcare Fraud Division, going after fraud in Workers Compensation and medical billing.

John spoke to us about protecting ourselves from identity theft, medical record number theft and medical insurance fraud (Los Angeles County is the worst in the US).  Criminals use these forms of personal information to steal money from us or from our insurance companies or the government, for which we all pay.  These crimes are lucrative because they have lower penalties than violent crimes, and the government budget crunch means nonviolent criminals have to be released sooner and parolees cannot be as well supervised as in the past.  Some of these criminals are outside the US jurisdiction, especially in the former Soviet Republics and the Middle East, where some of the money may fund terrorism.

Workers Compensation fraud affects all of us.  Contractors must be licensed in California.  If they walk away from a project or do not pay claims for construction materials or their workers’ injuries, the property owner may have to pay even if he has already paid the contractor.  Contractors are required to have Workers Compensation insurance.  You can check their Contractors State License Board (CSLB) license status by contacting (800) 321-CSLB or https://www2.cslb.ca.gov/OnlineServices/CheckLicenseII/checklicense.aspx.  You should ask your contractor, painter, plumber, landscaper, gardener, etc, for his Workers Compensation insurance company’s name and policy number, and verify this with the License Board.  If the contractor claims he is “exempt” because he is using a subcontractor, obtain the information from the subcontractor.  Note: some contractors who have lost their license will manage to find work as a subcontractor to a currently licensed contractor to get around the license restriction.

In Healthcare Fraud, the government assumes the biller is legitimate and typically pays what is billed without verifying the claim.  Some criminals do fictitious billing under someone else’s stolen medical record number, which can affect your future insurability and insurance costs.  Look at all Explanations of Benefits (EOBs) for any services not provided, or services billed for excessive amounts.  Criminals steal information from trash, so never put any personally identifiable information in the trash.  Destroy all of your discarded personal information by using a good crosscut shredder, not just strips that can be glued together and reconstructed.  Don’t mail cash or checks from your home mailbox, because these can be stolen when no one is watching.  Social Security numbers are often stolen for opening fictitious bank accounts.

For your computer information, use a random password with secure PIN numbers and up-to-date security software.  Don’t carry your Social Security number or password information in your wallet or smart phone, where they can be used if stolen.  Screen incoming phone calls and never give personal information over the phone.  One careless mistake can have a high cost in money and inconvenience.  Being a victim is embarrassing!