From Military.com:
“Time to
Renew? DoD Retirees and Dependents Now Getting Redesigned ID Cards”
Military retirees
and family members renewing or getting their first military identification
cards this year are nearly guaranteed to receive the Next Generation Uniform
Services Identification, or USID, Card, the first update to Defense Department
IDs for non-active duty beneficiaries in nearly 30 years. According to Pentagon
data, 97% of the DoD's ID renewal offices, known as Real-Time Automated
Personnel Identification Card System, or RAPIDS, sites worldwide are issuing
the new cards, which more closely resemble Common Access Cards used by troops
and DoD civilians. More than 200,000 new cards had been issued as of Feb. 28,
according to data provided by the Pentagon.
The USID cards
are more durable than the previous laminated cards since they are hard plastic
and feature advanced security measures that make them less susceptible to
counterfeiting and being used for fraud, according to defense officials. The
cards are being issued to new retirees and family members, as well as
beneficiaries whose cards have expired. The transition to the new cards is
expected to be completed by January 2026. Those eligible for the ID cards
include dependents of active-duty troops; Reserve members; retirees and their
dependents; Medal of Honor recipients and their dependents; 100%-disabled
veterans and their dependents; and dependents of Reserve members activated for
30 days or more. As anyone with a military ID knows, the cards are necessary to
access military bases easily, shop at commissaries and exchanges, and use
on-base amenities.
In April, as a
result of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pentagon officials announced that dependent
and retiree cards that were to expire in 2020 had been extended automatically
through September. This allowance has been extended again through June 2021 to
help eliminate the need to visit a RAPIDS site in person. Beneficiaries who
have the current ID card should not seek a new card solely for the purpose of
obtaining the new style, DoD officials said. The old style ID cards will remain
valid through their expiration date, according to the Pentagon.
^ The new cards
look ugly, but hopefully will be more secure and I’m saying that as a Military
Brat. ^
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