The number of Americans connected to medical ID theft reached 1.8 million in 2013, a 20% increase from 2012. Consumers’ out-of-pocket costs as a result of the crime topped $12 billion. Combining medical information of multiple people on the same record could give doctors and nurses life-threatening misinformation about blood type, drug allergies or medical conditions. Three in 10 of the respondents had shared their medical credentials with family members, survey found. Health providers could help to reduce fraud by improving their procedures for identifying people coming in for services.”]