DEA Phone Scam
Board of Nursing (BON) staff received information concerning a fraudulent telephone scheme directed towards individuals holding Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) numbers, including nurses, who are contacted by phone with a message informing them that they are under investigation by the DEA. The callback number for the fraudulent phone message reported to the BON was (210) 942-1531. The caller ID for the fraudulent call indicated that the call came from (210) 942-1449, which may be fake. Nurses who are contacted by such an individual should:
- Report the attempted fraud to the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. For more information, go to https://oig.hhs.gov/fraud/report-fraud/index.asp, and
- Contact the Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) for the Attorney General of Texas. Visit https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/consumer-protection/phone-mail-and-fax-scams/how-spot-and-report-phone-scams for more information on phone scams and to file an Online Consumer Complaint.
Vigilance and appropriate skepticism are key to avoiding falling victim to those who run these scams. If you receive a communication that does not seem quite right, document any pertinent information which may assist in identifying the individual(s) responsible for the call and report that information to the OIG and OCP through the links listed above.
