Approximately 271,000 seniors throughout the state will receive new Medicare cards this month, but without imprinted Social Security numbers — a design intended to prevent identity theft.
New cards will be mailed to individuals at varying dates, and all are expected to arrive by the end of June, said Tom Duran, Pacific Area representative from the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, at a press conference held Thursday by the state Attorney General’s Office.
Unlike a current Medicare card, which contains an individual’s Social Security number, the new card uses randomly generated numbers to identify cardholders. The new number is not linked in any way to an individual’s Social Security number, minimizing the risk of it falling into the wrong hands.
“There’s always people out there looking to take advantage of the system, so we have to develop safeguard systems without compromising patient care,” said Duran.
Despite the new cards, officials say identify thieves still continue to target seniors by taking advantage of the potential for confusion during the changeover.
Kaipolani Cullen, volunteer coordinator of the Senior Medicare Patrol, said thieves are using phone scams to steal information from the new cards. New phone scams include individuals identifying themselves as Medicare workers and asking that cardholders provide their old Medicare number to have the new card mailed to them. Another phone scam asks cardholders to pay a fee for a new card by sending a check in the mail.
There have been no reports of mail or email scams, said Cullen.
Cullen emphasized that Medicare will never call customers to ask for personal information, and advises customers to “guard your card.”
General Attorney Russell A. Suzuki urged seniors to report any suspicious scams or frauds immediately to prevent others from falling victim to thieves.
Duran said cardholders are not required to memorize their new identification numbers. New numbers can be requested in the event one is stolen or compromised in any way.
Doctors and Medicare providers have been notified of the change. Cardholders will be able to use both their old and new cards at appointments until Dec. 19.
