Would you like for a family member or caregiver to be able to call Medicare on your behalf?

Would you like a way to store all your health records in one place online so you can quickly share them with a new doctor or other health care provider?

How about an easy way to print a new Medicare card if you lose yours? Or a quick way to see what preventive health services, like cancer screenings and vaccinations, are available to you?

You can do all that and more by creating a free, secure MyMedicare.gov account.

To create an account, go to MyMedicare.gov. You’ll be asked to provide a username and password. You’ll also need to enter your Medicare number as it appears on your red, white and blue Medicare card.

Once you’ve completed your online registration, you can sign in to MyMedicare.gov and start using the site. Medicare will mail you a confirmation letter containing the password you created, in case you forget it. (Make sure you list the address that Social Security or the Railroad Retirement Board has on file for you.) We’ll also send a confirmation email if you gave us your email address during registration.

MyMedicare.gov is available in English and Spanish.

Once you have created a MyMedicare.gov account, you can:

>> Check your Medicare claims as soon as they are processed.

>> Find your eligibility, entitlement and preventive service information.

>> Check your Medicare health plan and prescription drug enrollment information.

>> View your Part B deductible information.

>> Manage your prescription drug list and other personal health information.

>> Create an “On the Go Report” that allows you to print your health information to share with your health care providers.

So, how do you authorize Medicare to discuss your records and benefits with a family member or caregiver?

Medicare can’t give personal health information about you to anyone unless you give permission in writing first. To do this, sign in to your MyMedicare.gov account and fill out form CMS-10106: “Authorization to Disclose Personal Health Information.”

You can fill out and submit the form online by following these steps:

>> Navigate to the “My Account” tab.

>> Click “Authorized Representative.”

>> Click “Medicare Authorization to Disclose Personal Health Information form.”

>> Enter the requested information and click the “Continue” button.

Or you can print and mail form-10106 to us.

If you have Original Medicare, you can check your Medicare claims as they appear in your MyMedicare.gov account. Just sign in and follow these steps:

>> Click on the “Claims” tab. From there you can view claims that have been processed in the past 15 months.

>> Select the type of claim and then the appropriate date range from the list.

>> Click the “Submit” button to begin the search.

>> After you search, select any of the blue claim numbers to see additional details.

Why is it important to check your Medicare claims? Because it helps protect both you and Medicare against fraud. The sooner you see and report inaccurate claims, or claims for services you never received, the sooner we can stop fraud.

Keep in mind that if you’re in a Medicare Advantage (Part C) plan or a prescription drug (Part D) plan, you can’t view claims for these plans on MyMedicare.gov. Call your plan for more information about a claim.

For more information on MyMedicare.gov, go to www.mymedicare.gov/helppages/gettingstarted/register.

If you don’t have a MyMedicare.gov account, you can still check your Original Medicare claims by calling 800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227) and using the automated phone system.

Greg Dill is Medicare’s regional administrator for Arizona, California, Nevada, Hawaii and the Pacific territories. You can always get answers to your Medicare questions by calling 800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227).