The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will begin mailing out new Medicare cards beginning in April 2018. The new Medicare cards will include a unique Medicare number instead of the Social Security number listed on existing cards. The change is intended to prevent fraud and identity theft. Here’s what you need to know about your new Medicare card.
When to expect your card. The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to remove Social Security numbers from all Medicare cards by April 2019. New Medicare cards will be mailed out between April 2018 and April 2019. The exact timing of the mailing varies by region, and residents of Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia will get their cards first. Retirees in other states can expect to receive their new cards later in 2018 or in early 2019. Retirees who live in Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Puerto Rico, Tennessee and the Virgin Islands will be among the last to receive their new cards. “Mailing everyone a new card will take some time, perhaps at least a year, so your card might arrive at a different time than your friend’s or your neighbor’s,” says Lisa Weintraub Schifferle, an attorney at the Federal Trade Commission.
[Read: How to Keep Your Social Security Number Safe.]
There is no charge for the new card. Medicare beneficiaries do not need to pay for a new card and will automatically receive one in the mail. “If someone asks you to pay for your new Medicare card, hang up, because your new Medicare card is free,” Schifferle cautions. “If you get a call claiming to be from Medicare asking for your Social Security number or your bank information, hang up.”
You will not receive a call from Medicare asking for personal information. “Watch out for phone scams related to the new Medicare cards where callers are claiming they are from Medicare and they want to verify their personal information in order to send them their new card,” says Sandy Morales, a project manager for California Health Advocates. “Never disclose personal information over the phone. Medicare will not be contacting you about sending you your new card.”
Double check your address on file. It’s worth checking that your card will be mailed to your current address. Those who have moved since enrolling in Medicare should take care to update their address with the Social Security Administration. “Cards are going to be mailed out to whatever address Social Security has on file for that beneficiary,” Morales says. You can confirm your mailing address at socialsecurity.gov/myaccount, 1-800-772-1213 or by calling your local Social Security office.
[Read: Medicare Fall Open Enrollment: What You Need to Know.]
Start using your new card. When you get the new card, bring it to your next medical appointment. There will be a 21-month transition period where you can continue to use your existing Medicare card or the new card from April 1, 2018, through December 31, 2019. Your Medicare coverage and benefits are the same, regardless of which card you use. If you have a Medicare Advantage Plan, you should continue to use the ID card for that plan, but also carry your new Medicare card to medical appointments. Retirees who are new to Medicare in April 2018 or later will receive one of the new cards.
Properly dispose of the old card. Once you receive your new Medicare card, it’s important to dispose of your old card in a way that doesn’t reveal your Social Security number. “They should destroy it in a way that makes the old number unrecognizable,” according to a CMS official. “Shred the card. Don’t put it out in the trash or recycling. Make sure that it is destroyed.”
[Read: Medicare Out-of-Pocket Costs You Should Expect to Pay.]
Protect your Medicare number. The new Medicare numbers are a unique and randomly generated series of 11 numbers and uppercase letters. The letters S, L, O, I, B and Z will not be used in order to make the characters easier to read. Remember to keep your new Medicare number confidential, and only share it with doctors, pharmacists and other health care providers who need this information for Medicare transactions. “Definitely do not carry your Medicare card with you as a constant practice,” says Amy Nofziger, regional director of the AARP Foundation. Health care providers are expecting you to begin using the new number by the end of 2019.
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Retirees Get New Medicare Cards originally appeared on usnews.com
