EDITORIAL: Heed Medicare warnings
This group -- those ages 65 or older and certain younger people with disabilities -- includes more than 1.1 million
The
The irony is this effort is prompted by the government's interest in doing more to protect the private, personal information of millions of covered individuals. But at least during the roll-out phase, this potentially makes each person more vulnerable to fraud.
"Any time changes are made to programs that target the elderly, scam artists come out of the woodwork," says
Procter advises the mailings of new cards started in April, but most of the country has been advised to not expect to see new cards until "after
"Mailings this massive take time, so people shouldn't be concerned if their neighbor gets a new card before theirs arrives," Procter says.
She adds Medicare never will call and ask for your
CMS offers this additional counsel for all those covered by Medicare:
--You can and should destroy your old card when the new one arrives. An exception is if you are using a Medicare Advantage plan; the card for that plan is still your main Medicare card.
--The new cards are paper and you can print your own replacement card if needed.
--If someone asks you for your information or your money, or threatens to cancel your health benefits if you don't share your personal information, hang up and call Medicare toll-free at 800-633-4227.
For more information, visit www.medicare.gov/newcard.
___
(c)2018 the St. Joseph News-Press (St. Joseph, Mo.)
Visit the St. Joseph News-Press (St. Joseph, Mo.) at www.newspressnow.com/index.html
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
PG&E could shut off your power on purpose amid fire hazards
5 states hold primaries; Wexton to take on Comstock in Va.
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News