Savvy Senior: New Medicare Cards Debut Next Year

Dear Savvy Senior,

I just received my Medicare card in the mail and was surprised to see that the ID number is the same as my Social Security number. I know it’s a bad idea to carry around anything that displays my Social Security number because it makes me vulnerable to identity theft. Wasn’t the government supposed to stop putting Social Security numbers on Medicare cards?

New Beneficiary

Dear New,

Many people new to Medicare are surprised to learn that the ID number on their Medicare card is still identical to their Social Security number (SSN). After all, we’re constantly warned not to car...