Subject:

Benefits for Victims of the World Trade Center and Pentagon Tragedies

Purpose

To give you a brief status report on the actions that the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is taking to assist and expedite the receipt of benefits to Federal employees and their families that were affected by the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the plane crash in Pennsylvania.

Background

OPM is working with the Office of Workers Compensation Programs and Office of Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance to assist survivors in applying for benefits. We are coordinating our efforts to provide expedited processing for claims. Questions about filing for survivor and life insurance benefits should be directed to (202) 606-0788. Questions about filing for workers' compensation benefits should be directed to 1 (866) 999-3322 (TTY number 1-(877) 889-5627).

OPM issued a letter to the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program carriers on September 12, 2001, advising them that some of the many victims are Federal employees, retirees, and family members covered under a Federal Employees Health Benefits Program plan. We asked them to be certain that every assistance and consideration is given to the victims and their families and that they be particularly sensitive to claims filed as a result of this tragedy.

We also asked the carriers to administer flexibility under their contracts. For example, for fee-for-service plans to relax the requirement under the pre-certification provision that the plan must be notified within two business days of an emergency admission. Likewise, fee-for-service and prepaid plans were asked to relax their requirements about notification and levels of benefit payment when victims are taken to non-plan and/or non-PPO hospitals or other disaster treatment centers.

Procedure

To assist us in getting information to the right people as quickly as possible, we would like you to notify us immediately if your agency had employees in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, or in the Pennsylvania crash that were killed, injured, or are missing.

We would like to establish contact persons at each agency that employs individuals affected by the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Please provide us with the names, telephone, and fax number of your agency contacts. You can fax the information to us at (202) 606-1108. If the names of contacts are not yet available, please let us know if you have employees affected and provide the contact information later.

Additional Information

Attached are some publications that you may find helpful in answering employee's questions.

Work-Related Injuries and Fatalities - What you and Your Family Need to Know About Your Benefits This booklet summarizes the types of payments that Federal employees who are injured, or survivors of employees who die because of job-related illness or injury, may be eligible to receive. This booklet is available at: http://www.opm.gov/asd/pdf/ri84-002.pdf.

Handling Traumatic Events - A Manager's Guide This handbook can be used to prepare for traumatic events in the workplace. It also serves as a guide to follow should a traumatic event occur at your workplace. The guide is available at: http://www.opm.gov/ehs/traugdpg.htm.

Please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.

Raymond J. Kirk, Acting Director Benefits Officers Resource Center Retirement and Insurance Service

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