LAPRA - About Us

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The Los Angeles Police Relief Association, Inc. (LAPRA) was originally organized October 17, 1919 and was incorporated on January 26, 1939 to provide benefits and support for members of the Los Angeles Police Department. The purpose of LAPRA is to obtain and provide group medical, dental, life and off-duty disability insurance plans for its members; to aid and support its members in times of emergency and distress, in sickness, accident and death; to promote and improve the physical wellness, social well-being and welfare of its members and to provide relief to members and families.

LAPRA is governed by a Board of volunteer Directors with 11 active and retired members serving as Directors. The Board of Directors elects the corporate officers, a president, vice president, secretary and treasurer. Day to day operations are supervised by an Administrator located on the premises who reports directly to the Board of Directors. There are 18 employees of LAPRA all based at the Los Angeles address.

LAPRA also operates the Canteen at Parker Center for the convenience of officers and community members who visit Parker Center.

MEDICARE PART D PRESCRIPTION DRUG COVERAGE– IMPORTANT NOTICE

In 2003, the Federal Government voted to expand Medicare coverage to include Pharmacy Coverage known as Medicare Part D. This benefit becomes effective January 1, 2006, and it is very important that you understand how this change will affect you.

As a retired Member of LAPRA, you already have pharmacy benefits provided by LAPRA (through either Blue Cross or Kaiser) that are better than those that will be available through Medicare Part D. The Federal Government wants to encourage plans, such as LAPRA, to continue to provide pharmacy coverage for members and, because the prescription drug coverage under the Blue Cross and Kaiser plans is better than what is available through Medicare Part D, the new Medicare Legislation included a credit for Members in existing group plans. This credit will be used to offset the impact of the change in the retiree subsidy. City Subsidies vary and are determined by retirement date, age and years of service. The net impact will vary depending on these factors.

You will be receiving important notices from Blue Cross and Kaiser during the month of November. Some of these notices will require that you complete certain documents and return them to us within specific timelines. Please pay close attention to the instructions detailed in these notices. Failure to comply could result in higher premium costs.

FOR INDIVIDUALS CURRENTLY COVERED BY A LAPRA BLUE CROSS PLAN

You will soon receive a letter from Blue Cross which will include instructions, enrollment forms and a new deduction card. In order to qualify for the Medicare Part D rates, you MUST complete a new enrollment form. If you are enrolled for Medicare Parts A and/or B, a separate form must be filled out by every person that is covered by the LAPRA plan. This means that if you are married, and you and your spouse are both covered by the LAPRA plan, each of you must fill out an enrollment form. Your letter from Blue Cross will include an appropriate number of enrollment forms for you and each of your family members.

YOU MUST RETURN ALL ENROLLMENT FORMS AND YOUR DEDUCTION CARD TO LAPRA, NO LATER THAN MONDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2005.

Your enrollment form(s) will be reviewed by LAPRA and forwarded to Blue Cross. Blue Cross must have these forms to prove to the Federal Government that you are enrolled for Medicare Part D through LAPRA and to get credits from Medicare to lower your costs.

Once you send back the enrollment form(s) and deduction card, you will get new separate ID cards, one for your medical plan and one for your pharmacy plan.

If you, or your covered spouse, sign up for Medicare Part D directly with Medicare, or with another plan that you purchase independent of LAPRA, you will be paying money for a benefit that you already have. In addition, your LAPRA premiums will be higher.

FOR INDIVIDUALS CURRENTLY COVERED BY THE LAPRA KAISER PLAN

If you are currently enrolled in the Kaiser Senior Advantage Plan, this means that you are enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B or Medicare Part B only and you have assigned your benefits to Kaiser. Kaiser will automatically enroll you in its Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. There is no separate enrollment form to complete. If you, or your covered spouse, enroll in another Medicare prescription drug plan (outside of the LAPRA Kaiser plan), you will be dis-enrolled from the Kaiser Senior Advantage Plan and transferred to an unassigned Kaiser benefit category, resulting in higher premiums.

New ID cards will be issued by Kaiser that will replace your current card.

If you are currently enrolled in Kaiser in a Non-Senior Advantage Plan, this means that you have not assigned your benefits to Kaiser and cannot enroll in Medicare Part D. Kaiser will therefore not receive a credit from Medicare for your prescription drug coverage and your premium will remain unchanged. However, your subsidy may be reduced, resulting in an increased out-of-pocket premium to you.

YOUR PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFITS PROVIDED BY LAPRA THROUGH BLUE CROSS AND KAISER WILL REMAIN UNCHANGED REGARDLESS OF YOUR MEDICARE PART D ENROLLMENT STATUS.

WHO TO CONTACT IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS

We recognize that this is an important change for Medicare Participants and LAPRA is available to answer any questions you may have at (888) 252-7721 or (213) 674-3701. If you have questions about your subsidy, please contact the Pension Department at (213) 978-4560.