Here is an important update provided by The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as they continue to successfully mail newly-designed Medicare cards with the new Medicare Number.
Nearly 35 million cards have been mailed as of August 31st. CMS is processing claims and eligibility requests with the Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI), showing that providers are successfully using the new number.
started mailing new cards to people with Medicare who live in Wave 6 states this week and finished mailing cards to people who live in Waves 1, 2, 3 and 4 states. Because card mailing is progressing so well, they have updated the mailing schedule to include an approximate start date for the last wave and appear to be on track to finish mailing new cards to all people with Medicare before April 2019.
New Medicare Card Mailing Strategy
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is required to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019. A new, unique Medicare Number is replacing the SSN-based Health Insurance Claim Number (HICN) on each new Medicare card. Since April 2018, CMS has been mailing new Medicare cards to all people with Medicare on a flow basis, based on geographic location and other factors. These mailings will follow the sequence outlined below. People with Medicare can get information about the mailings and sign up for emails about the status of card mailings in their area on Medicare.gov/NewCard.
With their ongoing focus on fraud and protecting the identities of people with Medicare, CMS is continuously adjusting and improving their mailing strategy to make sure they’re mailing new cards to accurate addresses and using the highest levels of fraud protection throughout the mailing. To do this, they’re:
Using trusted industry tools and standards to verify addresses.
- Comparing each address against multiple information sources to ensure they’re mailing to the right person and the right address.
- Mailing cards to people with Medicare when they have high confidence in their identity and address.
If someone with Medicare says they didn’t get a card after their mailing wave ends, you should instruct them to:
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) where CMS can verify their identity, check their address and help them get their new card.
- Continue to use their current card to get health care services until they get their new card.
People with Medicare should continue to protect their new number to prevent medical identity theft and healthcare fraud. CMS will continue to raise awareness about potential scams and how they can prevent fraud through our outreach and launched a national fraud prevention campaign in September before Medicare Open Enrollment.