Public health workers and law enforcement in Wood County are cautioning people to avoid potential fraud related to COVID-19.
“During these times when we have a lot of outreach and information regarding COVID-19 vaccines, contact tracing, etc., there are some basic rules we want you to be aware of,” said Wood County Sheriff Mark Wasylyshyn.
Wood County Health Department representatives may reach out via phone as part of COVID-19 response activities such as vaccine distribution and scheduling, testing and contact tracing. They will leave a message if they’re unable to reach someone.
Wood County Health Department may call and request some personal information as part of its response activities, including a person’s birthdate, address, and contacts with other people, if they have COVID-19 or may have been in contact with someone who is positive.
Health Department representatives will not ask for any sort of payment in order to register for a COVID-19 vaccine or be placed on a list to receive a vaccine. Some vaccine providers may request health insurance information.
Health Department representatives will not ask for your bank account, credit card number or Social Security number. If you have concerns that a call you receive is not legitimate, ask for the caller’s name and phone number, hang up, and call Wood County Health Department at 419-352-8402 to verify their identity.
You can also make sure that you access legitimate information online by directly visiting the websites for trusted sources, such as Wood County Health Department (www.WoodCountyHealth.org), the Ohio Department of Health (www.odh.ohio.gov) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (www.cdc.gov).
Wood County Health Department’s website will continue to be the best place to obtain local information on COVID-19 vaccine availability, Wood County Health Commissioner Benjamin Robison explained.
Reliable vaccine information is available from the main page of the Health Department’s website by clicking on COVID-19 Vaccines. You can also go to Vaccine.WoodCountyHealth.org.
“By taking a few simple steps to safeguard your information and relying on only trusted sources, you can give yourself the best chance to get access to vaccine quickly when you are eligible, as well as protecting yourself from being a victim of potential fraud,” Robison said.
For more information on avoiding consumer fraud and scams, go to the Ohio Attorney General’s website at www.OhioProtects.org or call 1-800-282-0515.
