Seniors Seeking Medicare Info Get Phone Sex Line

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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa --Seniors calling a phone number for answers about the new Medicare prescription drug program reached a phone sex line by mistake.

The Medicare program, criticized by some as confusing, will likely be more confusing to Iowans and others who received a letter from Humana Inc. with an incorrect phone number.

"When things are wrong, why does it always have to be a place like this?" said Dick Brown, spokesman for Humana Inc., one of numerous insurance companies offering coverage for the program that starts Jan. 1. "Why can't they route you to 'Grandma's Daycare?'"

Brown said a few thousand letters were sent nationwide last month to people asking about Medicare's drug program under Humana. The phone number listed on the letter was one digit off from Humana's correct number, 1-800-992-2551.

A message at the wrong number directed callers to "Intimate Encounters," which offered service for $2.99 or 99 cents per minute, depending on what callers want.

"It's very unfortunate," Brown said, adding a final decision had not been made for sending out a correction.

"As soon as they were made aware of it, they changed the number for subsequent letters," Brown said.

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2005/12/05/seniors_seeking_medicare_info_get_sex_line?mode=PF