ABOUT LACERA

DISABILITY PROCEDURES & SERVICES COMMITTEE MINUTES - 2-4-09

MEMBERSHIP

• James P. Harris, Chair
• Yves Chery, Vice Chair
• Ed C. Morris
• Simon S. Russin, Alternate

MEMBERS AT LARGE

• Simon Frumkin
• William de la Garza
• Edward Blecksmith

STAFF, ADVISORS, PARTICIPANTS

• Gregg Rademacher
• Janice Golden
• James Castranova
• Vincent Lim
• Frank Boyd
• Steve Tallant
• Debbie Juul
• Oliver Kuzma, M.D
• Penelope Rodriguez
• Laura Gonzalez
• Shari Altmark
• Darren Huey
• Jim Alvarez
• Tamara Caldwell
• Maisha Coulter
• Andy Demetroulis
• Mercie Martinez
• Debbie Semnanian
• Nichelle Porter
• Kerri Wilson
• Anna Kwan
• Debra Martin
• Vicki Neely
• Richard Schlosser

ATTORNEYS

• Allison Barrett
• Thomas Wicke

GUESTS

1. APPOINTMENT OF VOTING MEMBER(S) IN THE EVENT ONE OR MORE REGULAR COMMITTEE MEMBERS ARE ABSENT

   In Miss Antebi’s absence, Mr. Russin was appointed as a voting member of the Committee.

2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF January 7, 2009

   A motion was made by Mr. Morris and seconded by Mr. Russin to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of January 7, 2009. The motion passed unanimously.

3. FOR INFORMATION
   1. Manager’s Report

      Ms. Juul discussed the following topics with the Committee:

      1. Staff will start using the revised Disability Retirement Evaluation Summary form next month, March 2009.
      2. Staff will begin using the new format for the Worker’s Compensation History section of the Disability Evaluation Report for new cases. The format for cases already in process will not be changed.
4. ACTION ITEMS

A – C. Consider Application of David Paul Taylor, MD, Jane Y. Chung, MD, and Jeffrey T. Miller, MD as LACERA Panel Physicians

Dr. Kuzma did not receive the materials for items A thru C, therefore, the Committee voted to postpone discussion until the March 4, 2009, meeting.

D. Need to Appoint an Ad-Hoc Committee in Connection with the Search for Referees for LACERA Disability Appeals

Jim Castranova requested that the Committee appoint an Ad-Hoc Committee in connection with staff’s recruitment of attorneys to serve as referees for LACERA Disability Appeals.

A motion was made by Mr. Chery and seconded by Mr. Simon to accept the recommendation and submit it to the Board of Retirement for approval.

The motion passed unanimously.

5. MISCELLANEOUS (Discussion)
6. PUBLIC COMMENT
7. GOOD OF THE ORDER
8. ADJOURNMENT

The Board of Retirement has adopted a policy permitting any member of the Board to attend a standing committee meeting open to the public. In the event five or more members of the Board of Retirement (including members appointed to the Committee) are in attendance, the meeting shall constitute a joint meeting of the Committee and the Board of Retirement. Members of the Board of Retirement who are not members of the Committee may attend and participate in a meeting of a Board Committee but may not vote on any matter discussed at the meeting. The only action the Committee may take at the meeting is approval of a recommendation to take further action at a subsequent meeting of the Board.

Documents distributed to members of the Committee less than 72 hours prior to the meeting will be available for public inspection at LACERA at the time they are distributed to a majority of the Committee, provided the documents are subject to public disclosure and relate to an open session of the Committee. Such documents may be viewed Monday through Friday during normal 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. business hours. LACERA is located at 300 N. Lake Avenue, Suite 820, Pasadena, California.

Persons requiring an alternative format of this agenda pursuant to Section 202 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 may request one by calling Cynthia Guider at (626)-564-6000, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, but no later than 48 hours prior to the time the meeting is to commence. Assistive Listening Devices are available upon request. American Sign Language (ASL) Interpreters are available with at least three (3) business days notice before the meeting date.

3/6/09