[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 69 (Monday, May 23, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1060]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       STOP THE THEFT OF OUR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS ACT OF 2005

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BOB FILNER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 23, 2005

  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the ``Stop the 
Theft of Our Social Security Numbers Act of 2005'' (H.R. 2518).
  Many of my constituents have alerted me to a serious attack on our 
personal privacy, and an insidious practice that has become known as 
identity theft. Amazingly enough, this theft is facilitated by a public 
agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, which aids and 
abets this theft not through the Internet or any high-technology means 
but through the U.S. Postal Service. By including our Social Security 
numbers on Medicare related mailings, the Department of Health and 
Human Services places thousands of Medicare beneficiaries at risk of 
becoming victims of identity theft.
  To combat this problem, I have introduced this bill which prohibits 
the Department of Health and Human Services from including our Social 
Security numbers on Medicare related mailings the department mails us 
every year.
  Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes of this decade. 
It creates a nightmare for those who become victims. Identity thieves 
make off with billions of dollars each year and each day more than 
1,000 people are being defrauded. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission 
recently listed identity theft as the top consumer complaint. With just 
your name and your Social Security number, a thief can open credit 
lines worth $10,000, rent apartments, sign up for utilities, and even 
earn income. Your credit rating is ruined, you risk being rejected for 
everything from a college loan to a mortgage, and it is up to you to 
fix it all. Law enforcement will generally not pursue these identity 
theft cases.
  Having your Social Security card number on a Medicare related mailing 
puts people at a higher risk for identity theft. Mail that is lost or 
stolen with personally identifiable information like a person's Social 
Security number can be used by criminals to steal someone's identity 
and commit fraud.
  The Department of Health and Human Services has said that the health 
insurance claim number on Medicare related mailings is a variation of 
the recipient's Social Security number, not the actual number. This 
agency has noted that the number may be based on the Social Security 
number of a spouse or parent; however, more often than not, the number 
the agency uses is the person's Social Security number preceded or 
followed by a single letter of the alphabet. The agency has said that 
it has no immediate plans of stopping this practice. What more can the 
Department of Health and Human Services do to aid the theft of your 
identity? Give thieves and unscrupulous people your mother's maiden 
name?
  Not to long ago, we were experiencing the same problem with the 
mailing labels sent to us from the IRS. I was told that there was no 
way the IRS would change this practice. I found it incomprehensible 
that neither the agency nor its contractor would change a computer 
program for booklets that would be mailed out to millions of Americans 
all over our Nation. After I introduced a bill to require the IRS to 
stop putting our Social Security numbers on its mailings, the 
department finally found a way to stop this bad practice.
  Many commercial health insurance companies have already taken steps 
to remove Social Security numbers from their mailings as well as all 
other forms of client identification. Some States prohibit companies 
from displaying Social Security numbers internally and assign consumers 
unique numbers that would appear on Medicare cards. It is time for the 
Federal government to do its part to stop identity theft and help 
protect an individual's personal privacy.
  There is no excuse for leaving Medicare beneficiaries vulnerable to 
identity theft with a thinly disguised Social Security number on 
Medicare related mailings.
  My bill will force the Department of Health and Human Services to 
make this change to protect one of the most precious keys to our 
personal information, our Social Security number.

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