Ed MacConnell

Check the Status of Your New Card

*Cards have finished mailing to American Samoa, the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and to people who get RRB benefits.

 

Three Things To Know

  1. Your new card will automatically come to you. You don’t need to do anything as long as your address is up to date. If you need to update your address, visit your My Social Security.
  2. Once you get your new Medicare card, destroy your old Medicare card and start using your new card right away.
  3. Your new Medicare Number is a unique combination of numbers and letters. Your new number uses numbers 0 thru 9. The letters S, L, O, I, B, and Z are never used.

 

Your New Card Will Look Like This

 

 

What To Do With Your Old Medicare Card

Your old Medicare card used your Social Security Number (or your Spouse’s Social Security Number) as a “Claim Number” (your Member ID). When Medicare was first made into a law in 1965, this seemed like an okay idea. However, in 2018, we live in a time where Identity Theft is very real. To protect your identity and streamline claims, CMS decided to assign new Medicare claim numbers for everyone enrolled. Due to your Social Security Number being directly on the card, we recommend crossing out your claim number in pen or marker and then shredding your old card as soon as your new one arrives. You should replace your old card immediately with your new one as soon as you get it.  If you are in a Medicare Advantage Plan, do NOT destroy your Insurance Card. You will still need that. Only destroy your old Medicare Card from the Government.