I've never heard of this before. When most people think of ID theft and fraud, credit cards, credit scores and various expenses come to mind. Have you thought about the security of your medical identity? Turns out medical ID theft is a major and growing concern, and once your medical ID is compromised, it can take years to undo the damage.

Most hospitals do little to confirm identity when patients check in, which means criminals can obtain simple medications to delivering babies and life-saving operations, leaving you responsible for bills to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

How to protect yourself:

• Check the explanation of benefits forms you get from insurance companies line-by-line to make sure they're correct -- don't just throw them away.
• If your wallet is stolen, notify your insurance company that your insurance card is gone and someone may be trying to use it.

How dangerous!!!!! Yet another reason why we should have free health care in the States. I hate you, Canada! Eh!!!!!!

CBS News

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