New Medicare Cards... What to Know
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that 2018 will be a transition year for its numbering and carding system so that patients’ Social Security Numbers will no longer be part of their Medicare ID. Patients will be assigned new Medicare Beneficiary Identifiers (MBIs) and CMS will start replacing patients’ cards in April 2018. The transition will be complete by April 2019 and the current patient numbers, or HICNs, will be completely phased out by January 1, 2020.
The CMS is doing this to help protect Social Security Numbers and your identity. By replacing the SSN-based HICN on all Medicare cards, they can better protect: private health care and financial information, as well as federal health care benefit and service payments.
Here are the most important things you need to know now:
Understand that mailing everyone a new card will take some time. Your card might arrive at a different time than your friend’s or neighbor’s.
Make sure your mailing address is up-to-date. If your address needs to be corrected, contact Social Security at ssa.gov/myaccount or 1-800-772-1213. TTY: 1-800-325-0778.
Beware of anyone who contacts you about your new Medicare card. We will never ask you to give us personal or private information to get your new Medicare number and card.
If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask us!
