While the rollout of new Medicare cards ended in 2019, scams about Medicare cards continue. You will not be getting an updated Medicare card this year, but scammers may try to convince you otherwise.
For example, scammers may falsely tell you that Medicare is again issuing new cards— perhaps plastic ones, metal ones, chipped cards, or black and white COVID-19 cards? No, this isn’t true – This is a scam. The scammers may tell you that in order for them to send your new Medicare card, you need to verify your identity, which may include your Medicare number. This is an attempt to gain your personal or financial information. Beware of unsolicited calls from anyone claiming to work for Medicare or anyone who needs you to verify your identity so they can send you an updated Medicare card.
Remember:
- Medicare will never call you uninvited to request personal or private information in order for you to get a new Medicare card. If this happens, just hang up.
- Medicare won’t charge you for a new card. If a caller claims you need to pay a fee to get a new or upgraded Medicare card, it’s a scam.
- Medicare doesn’t need to “verify” your information and never threatens to cancel benefits.
Learn more about Medicare Fraud and how to protect yourself and prevent fraud.
We’re Here for You
Again, if you come across any such scams, always hang up the phone and call our California Senior Medicare Patrol at 1-855-613-7080. If you’ve been scammed, we can make things right again.
