Is the MyChart "Medicare Kit" Offer Real?

Short answer: no. MyChart does not give away Medicare Kits, Senior Health Packages, or any other prizes, and it will never ask for your card details.

What the fake message says

MyChart is the patient app many hospitals and clinics use for test results, appointments, and messages from your doctor. Scammers are borrowing its name and logo. Their emails and texts carry subject lines like "Your MyChart Medicare Kit Awaits!" and promise a free Medicare Kit, Medicare Health Kit, or Senior Health Package.

To make you hurry, the message says stock for your area is limited, that unclaimed kits will go to the next person on a waiting list, and that the offer expires in 48 hours. None of it is true.

How the scam works

1. You click the link and pass through a few unrelated websites before landing on a page dressed up with the MyChart logo.
2. You fill in a short "survey" that collects your personal details, often with a countdown timer on screen.
3. You are asked to pay a small "shipping fee" for the free kit, and to enter your full card details.
4. Then the extra charges start. People who complained to the US Federal Trade Commission said they were charged the shipping fee, then charged again by a different company. One said they paid $9.95 and their card was immediately hit for another $29.95.

A second version skips the gift and says "your recent results are ready", then takes you to a copied MyChart login page to steal your password.

How to tell it's fake

1. MyChart does not hold giveaways. Any "free kit" or prize in a MyChart message is a red flag on its own.
2. Look at the sender. Real MyChart emails come from your own health provider or MyChart. A Gmail address, or an odd address with "MyChart" stuck into it, is a giveaway.
3. A countdown or "48 hours" deadline is there to stop you from checking first.
4. Any request for a card number or bank details means stop. Your health portal will never ask for them in an email or text.

What to do

1. Delete the message. Don't click anything in it, not even the "unsubscribe" link.
2. To check your real MyChart, open your health provider's official app, or type their website address yourself.
3. If you're not sure, call your doctor's office or clinic using a number you already have.

If you already clicked or paid

1. If you entered card details, call your bank or card company now using the number on the back of your card. Ask them to block the card and watch for extra charges.
2. If you typed your MyChart password on a page from a link, change it right away in the official app or website, and tell your provider's MyChart support team.
3. Check your statements for small charges you don't recognize over the next few months.
4. Report it. In the US, you can report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and let your health provider know so they can warn other patients.

If an older parent or relative uses MyChart, share this with them. Scams that mention Medicare usually get busier around Medicare Open Enrollment, which starts on October 15.

Sources: UC Davis Health: Warning for MyChart users · Association of Health Care Journalists: MyChart phishing scam · HIPAA Journal: Health systems warn patients about MyChart phishing · Gizmodo: That free MyChart Medicare Kit is a scam