New Medicare cards are being rolled out starting in April 2018 but scammers are already hard at work trying to take advantage of the change.
The new cards, which will take up to a year for full distribution, will include an 11-character, randomly assigned number with no connection to any other personal information, like Social Security numbers.
Although the first Medicare beneficiaries will not see the card until next April, scammers have started their efforts to take advantage of Medicare recipients. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid services (CMS) has begun a campaign to keep current and new cards away from scammers.
AARP has begun efforts as well to help CMS get the word out.
With this new scam, Medicare recipients are being called by people claiming to be from Medicare. The callers are asking for your Social Security number and bank information so you can receive the new card. They are also asking people to pay for the new card, and are telling people if they don’t pay or provide the information, they will lose their Medicare benefits.
If you receive one of these calls, hang up. The new card is free, and no one from Medicare will call to verify information before you receive it.
To earn more about the CMS “Guard Your Card” campaign, click here.