Released: June 22, 2008

Medicare cards may be targets of ID theft

Source: Robert Pear, New York Times [S.F. Chronicle] (Free Registration)

Social Security officials, concerned about the risk of identity theft, are calling for immediate action to remove Social Security numbers from the Medicare cards used by millions of Americans.
But Medicare officials have resisted the proposal, saying it would be costly and impractical.

In a new report, the inspector general of Social Security, Patrick O’Carroll Jr., says “immediate action is needed.”

“Displaying such information on Medicare cards unnecessarily places millions of individuals at risk for identity theft,” O’Carroll said. “We do not believe a federal agency should place more value on convenience than the security of its beneficiaries’ personal information.”

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