US scammers may be using DNA testing to defraud Medicare and steal identities

Launched this year to mark the country's centenary, the project also aims to issue genetic cards with personalised genotype analysis to 100,000 Estonian volunteers. — AFP Relaxnews

Authorities in several US states are warning about an alleged scam in which people visit senior-living communities and low-income neighbourhoods, offering to perform DNA tests and collecting information from people in government health programmes.  

The alleged DNA-testing scams appear to be a new twist on an old tactic, in which people are tricked into giving away personal information or participating in medical services they don’t need. Perpetrators of such schemes can bill the US government for unneeded medical tests and procedures, or use the information they collect – such as Medicare and Medicaid identification data – to commit identity theft and fraud.