The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is required to remove Social Security Numbers (SSNs) from all Medicare cards by April 2019.  Guidelines for new Medicare ID cards

New cards will be sent to patients, Mailing periods for new Medicare ID cards

April 2018-June 2018                                                                                                          Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania,Virginia, West Virginia, Alaska, American Samoa, California, Guam, Hawaii, Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon

After June 2018 to                                                                                                                                Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota,Wisconsin, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina,
South Carolina, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada,
New Mexico, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Puerto Rico, Tennessee, Virgin Islands

Providers, billers, billing software vendors and clearinghouses will need to be ready to use and send claims with these new ID #s starting April 2018 but will have until December 2019 to be completely compliant.

Providers and billers should check with their billing software and clearinghouses to be sure they are compliant with the new CMS guidelines pertaining to the new ID numbers.

Providers should acquire this new ID # from patients after April 2018 as dictated by the list above and begin using this new ID #.