Against the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) warnings to prevent identity theft, the government still requires Social Security number on identification used to get many government benefits. At least 44 million Medicare insurance cards contain the beneficiary’s full Social Security number. Social Security numbers also appear on 8 million Defense Department identity cards used by active duty and reserve forces and their dependents, and on identification cards issued to military retirees. The Pentagon plans to remove the numbers, but not until 2014. Additionally, the Internal Revenue Service advises taxpayers to write their Social Security number on checks used to make payments.
“Protect your Social Security number. Don’t carry your Social Security card in your wallet or write your Social Security number on a check,” was written in a warning by the FTC in a pamphlet sent months ago to every mailing address in the United States. The Social Security Administration offers similar advice. Most universities no longer use Social Security numbers. Private insurers, such as Blue Cross and Blue Shield, have recently issued new cards to roughly 200 million insureds to replace Social Security numbers with different identifiers. However, Medicare cards are claimed to be too costly to replace, with an estimated cost to the government of a half billion dollars to reissue.
The Pentagon will begin eliminating the Social Security number in stages starting at the end of this year. By 2014, the number will not be printed on any of the Defense Department cards except those for retirees who fail to request new IDs. The VA spent roughly $6 million to replace about 4 million benefit cards to remove the Social Security number and birth date and placed all sensitive information on a bar code and magnetic strip.
Source: http://www.lexisone.com/news/ap/ap070208d.html
