(BPT) - With millions of Americans slated to gain access to healthcare under the Affordable Care Act, many may find themselves unknowingly at risk for medical identity theft, a crime that costs the country $41.3 billion annually. In the United States, an estimated 1.5 million people have their ID stolen each year.

“It is a cruel twist on the traditional crime of personal identity theft,” says Jo-Ellen Abou Nader, senior director of Express Scripts’ Fraud, Waste and Abuse program. “When a person’s medical identity is stolen, they may find that false information is added to their personal health record such as a change in blood type or inaccurate allergies.”

Stolen medical identities often fuel another crime: prescription drug fraud and abuse. Thieves can use stolen information to illegally obtain prescription drugs and sell them on the secondary market. Illegal drug diversion costs the nation $73.5 billion each year, and prescription drug abuse is responsible for more deaths than heroin and cocaine combined.