News

East Lewis County residents are becoming the target of unscrupulous telephone scammers. Members of the community are receiving calls from representatives claiming to be part of the hospital billing department and demanding payment for unpaid medical bills. In most cases the person does not owe the hospital any money.

In this scam, the caller pretending to be an employee of the hospital billing department, aims to intimidate, confuse, and threaten the person into paying over the phone. Along with credit card information, they hope to garner the patient’s social security number and even bank account information.

This is just one of many scams taking place across the country. In this age, it can be difficult to determine the authenticity of callers. For that reason, we all need to be careful before giving any information over the telephone. It is important for you to know:

• First and foremost, we would never threaten to withhold lifesaving medical care from you.
• Our Arbor Health billing department does make outbound phone calls now and then; however, it is vital you know that we would never ask for your bank account information, your complete social security number or to make a payment using iTunes gift cards, prepaid debit cards, or wire transfers.
• If you receive such a call, NEVER agree to make a payment or provide any banking or confidential information over the telephone if you are not confident of the caller. Instead, hang up and call Arbor Health directly to verify that you do, indeed, have a bill with us by calling 360-496-3707. You can also call our billing service directly at 800-339-0791.

Arbor Health—including Morton Hospital, Mossyrock Clinic, Randle Clinic and Specialty Clinic—was created for you, by you. We are dedicated to serving you right here at home. This includes helping educate our community regarding threats like telephone scams. Arbor Health providers and support teams alike respect your privacy and dignity—and value the vital responsibility of caring for you.