In a move to combat medical identity theft, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is issuing new cards that no longer include Social Security numbers.
The cards will be mailed to beneficiaries in waves, depending on which state you live in.
The SSN-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) is being replaced with a Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI). MBIs are generated on a random basis and do not carry any unique or special identifiers that link back to the card owner.
As soon as you receive your new Medicare card, you can destroy your old card and start using your new card immediately. Although the cards are new, all of your existing benefits and coverage will remain the same.
Medicare will automatically mail your new card for free to the address you have on file with Social Security. Go here if you need to update your address.
To learn more about your new Medicare card, go here.
