“Earn $$$ helping doctors. Process medical claims from home. $20-$40/hour potential. Computer & modem required. We train.”

The classified ad looked like the perfect answer for a single mom in Augusta. She could earn good money working at home while caring for her three children. She called a toll-free number and was told that, for $377, she would get everything she needed to launch a lucrative medical billing business from home, including a software program and the names of doctors who wanted the service.

If she wasn’t completely satisfied, she could request a full refund within 30 days.

A year later, she hasn’t made a penny and her money is gone. And she’s not alone.

The Federal Trade Commission has received hundreds of complaints about fraudulent medical billing opportunities. One promoter claimed that for $325 to $495, a person could make $50,000 a year running an at-home medical billing business. But most who responded didn’t earn a dime.

As quickly as the FTC puts these companies out of business, others take their place. These schemes are advertised on the Internet or in classified sections of newspapers or shoppers’ guides, often alongside legitimate “help wanted” ads for hospital medical claims processors.

The ads often promise substantial income for full- or part-time work with “no experience required.”

Those who respond get a high-pressure sales pitch promising big bucks for a small investment. But the chances of making serious money are slim to none because newcomers to the medical billing market, with no experience and no contacts, face fierce competition and the companies offering work-at-home deals do nothing to help.

Once consumers pay, all they get is an out-of-date database of doctors who haven’t asked for medical billing services, a sample letter to use to find their own clients, and a useless money-back “guarantee.” Few ever get a refund, and then it’s after repeated phone calls to the company or complaints to their credit card companies, government agencies, or consumer groups.

The FTC and COMBAT offer this advice: Talk to former participants. Ask the promoter to give you the names of many or all previous customers. Choose whom to call and interview them in person. Request names of their clients and a description of their operations. If the promoter provides only a few references, be wary. They may be “shills” – people who are paid to endorse the company.

Call medical claims processing or billing business professional associations or local doctors. Ask them about the medical billing field. How much of a need is there for this type of work? How much work does medical billing entail? What kind of training is required? Do they know anything about the company you are considering.

If the company sells another firm’s software, check with the software company to find out whether they know of any problems with the medical billing promoter.

Contact the Maine Attorney General’s Office or COMBAT to see whether any unresolved complaints about the business opportunity or the promoter are on file. Be aware, however, that the absence of complaints doesn’t necessarily mean the company is legitimate.

Consult a lawyer, accountant or other business adviser before signing any agreement or paying any money. Because there are so many fraudulent companies out there, if you are considering work-at-home opportunities, keep your eyes wide open and your wallet shut tight until you are absolutely sure of what you will get for your money.

Consumer Forum is a collaboration of the Bangor Daily News and Northeast COMBAT/The Maine Center for the Public Interest, Maine’s membership-funded, nonprofit consumer organization. For help or to request individual or business membership information write: Consumer Forum, Bangor Daily News, PO Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329.