Attention Oregonians: A new Medicare card is coming your way. It will no longer have your Social Security number on it. That is the good news! The bad news is the scammers have discovered this and may try to take advantage of you. So, we have some tips to share with you to keep you safe.

In an effort to protect older adults from identity theft, the federal government started mailing out new Medicare cards that come with a new 11-digit identification number instead of your Social Security number.

Though the effort is designed to help minimize fraud, it has already sparked a series of scams. We want to let Oregonians know that as long as your address is correct, you don’t have to do anything to receive your new card. There is no activation process or fee, and Medicare will never initiate calls and ask to verify information over the phone.

“If someone calls and asks you for your personal information, money to activate the new card, or threatens to cancel your Medicare benefits if you don’t share your personal information, just hang up! It is a scam,” said Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum.

Medicare will not call you and Medicare will never ask for your Social Security number or bank information.

For more information on the new Medicare cards, visit https://www.medicare.gov/forms-help-and-resources/your-medicare-card.html, and if you think you have been contacted by a scammer please let us know by calling the Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Hotline at 1-877-877-9392 or go to the Oregon Department of Justice web site: www.oregonconsumer.gov.