As a Certified Senior Advisor, one of my missions is to help people avoid making irreversible mistakes. This is one of the biggest ones I see people make every day: carrying their social security card or their Medicare card in their wall or their purse. Never do this!
Identity Theft becomes way too easy once a thief has this piece of information. If you lose your wallet or forget your purse, or someone snatches them from your car, the damage to your credit and your finances can be done in hurry. Undoing the damage can be very expensive, take a long time to repair and be very stressful.
“But what if I need to show this to my doctor or to the bank or to the DMV?” Here’s the answer: Make a color copy of the cards at UPS store, Office Max, Staples or any copy store. Get a black magic marker, black out the final set of digits (ex 123-03-XXXX). Then, laminate the copy, put the copies in your wallet/
purse and LOCK UP the originals.
When you go to an office where they need this info, hand them the copy and TELL THEM ORALLY THE LAST FOUR DIGITS. This protects you and your information. Some offices may grumble but they will take it.
By the way, when you can’t remember the last four digits of your social anymore… that’s a sign you need some help 😉! Have a great day and let me know how I can help you take the mystery out of Medicare.
“We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all your options.”
