On the inside front cover of the 2018 Medicare & You handbook, there is an announcement that those of us who are on Medicare will be getting a new Medicare card.
The reason why is to help keep our information more secure and protect our identity. Our Social Security Number will no longer be on our Medicare card. Rather, our new Medicare card will have a new Medicare number that is unique to each of us and is only to be used for Medicare coverage.
The announcement indicates that the only thing changing is our Medicare card. Nothing will change in regard to our coverage or our benefits when the new cards are issued.
The announcement also indicates that the new Medicare cards will be issued between April 2018 and April 2019, so not everyone will be getting a new Medicare card at the same time. It is likely that I will not be getting my new Medicare card at the same time as my friends and neighbors.
All we need to do is to make sure that Medicare has our up-to-date mailing address. If you need to update your address, you can call 1-800-772-1213 or click here.
The announcement cautions that no one will be calling us to request personal or private information in order for us to get our new Medicare card, so beware of anyone who calls you. Do not give out personal or private information.