Reader alert: You may remember reading about this scam in the Toni Says column several months ago. Below is an email the Toni Says team received from a reader in Arizona just last week. Toni, I am concerned about a phone call I received from Medicare with my personal information which the agent was verifying.
He told me that I would receive my new plastic Medicare card with a chip the next day. I’m concerned because it has been over a week, and I have not received the card yet. I believe that I made a terrible mistake because I verified my information and answered the questions he asked about me.
What should I do or who I should call to see if Medicare is trying to contact me? Sometimes it is hard to know the right thing to do when it involves Medicare. — Jeanette from Phoenix Hello, Jeanette: This is a Medicare scam that is targeting America’s Medicare population. Your Medicare card is still the same card you currently have.
There is NOT a new plastic Medicare card. Jeanette, you have become the victim of a scam. The most recent Medicare card update began in 2018 and was completed before April 2019.
The new card includes a random identification number (of numbers and letters) and no longer displays your Social Security number. Medicare and Social Security will NEVER call your home or office and ask for your personal or banking information. Medicare already has all the information needed to verify they are speaking with you.
If the government needed information from you.