Making LAwell Benefit Changes

Changes to your LAwell benefit elections can only be made under one of the following three situations:

  1. Open Enrollment

  2. New Employee Enrollment

  3. Qualifying Life Event

Each one requires you to take certain actions to ensure you and your dependents are properly enrolled. Read more about each situation below.

Open Enrollment

Open Enrollment takes place every year during the month of October (October 1 - 31). Elections during Open Enrollment stay in effect from January 1 through December 31 of the following year.

New Employee Enrollment

  • When you enroll as a new employee during the year, your benefit choices stay in effect through December 31st of that year.

  • If you happen to begin your employment with the City during the months of October through December, you will need to make elections twice. One set of elections for that year, and another set of elections for the following year.

  • If you are a New Employee, please visit the New Employee page for more details.

Qualifying Life Event

A qualifying life event under the LAwell program is an event change or a family status change, as defined by the LAwell program, that allows employees to make benefit changes during the year.

Life event changes will go into effect the day you report the change IF your event meets all requirements AND you complete all the requirements detailed below. In compliance with federal rules and LAwell program requirements, the LAwell program will determine if your change request is permitted.

Report the Change within 30 days:

  • To report a qualifying life event:

  • All changes must be reported within 30 days of the life event date in order to be considered for eligibility. Failure to give LAwell timely notice may cause coverage of a dependent to not start or to end, and may result in your liability to repay the Plan if any benefits are paid to an ineligible person. 

  • In general, changes you can make during a qualifying life event must be consistent with that type of life event change. For example, if you are reporting a divorce life event, you are typically able to only remove your ineligible spouse from the LAwell benefits for which he/she is currently covered. Making changes to your own LAwell benefits coverage, or the coverage of another dependent, may not be allowed.

Submit Supporting Documentation within 60 days of the date on your confirmation statement.

  • In most cases, supporting documentation will be required within 60 days of the date on your confirmation statement. If you do not submit required documents by the deadline, any change you made online or by calling the Benefits Service Center will not take effect.

  • For example, if you add a dependent to your health coverage and fail to provide the required documentation within 60 days of the date on your confirmation statement, that dependent’s coverage will not take effect. Any medical, vision, or dental expenses your dependent incurred before the dependent became properly enrolled will be your financial responsibility.

Not All Events Are Qualifying Life Events

  • The following are examples of situations that are not considered qualifying life events and do not permit you to make midyear changes: promoting or changing jobs/departments; changes to network physicians or facilities; a diagnosis or changes to your or your dependent’s health; or your dependent child attending an out-of-state school.

Some common Life Events and their reporting requirements are shown in the table to the right. This is not an exhaustive list and is subject to change.

 
Life Event Report the Life Event within
30 days of the… 		Where to Report Supporting Documents*
required 60 days from date on
Confirmation Statement?

Marriage 		…date of the marriage Online:
keepingLAwell.com
OR
Phone:
833-4LA-WELL		 Yes: Marriage Certificate
Domestic Partnership, start or end …effective date Yes: LAwell Domestic Partnership Affidavit
Divorce …date divorce is final Yes: Signed Divorce Judgment
Additions due to Birth, Adoption,
Legal Custody, etc. 		…date of birth

…date of legal custody 		Yes: Medicare proof
Entitled to or lose eligibility for
Medicare 		…first day of coverage Yes: Birth Certificate

Dependent loses non-City or COBRA
coverage
…last day of coverage
Yes: Confirmation letter of loss
of coverage
Death of a Dependent …date of the death Phone Only:
833-4LA-WELL 		Yes: Death Certificate
Move outside Medical or Dental
plan’s service area 		…day you move May be required: Change of Address
Half-time to Full-time (Employee) Not Applicable Depends on benefit change requested
Go on leave**
or Return to work after leave 		Not Applicable Depends on benefit change requested

*Documents listed serve as examples. Other documents may apply to your specific life event. Contact the Employee Benefits Division to ask what documents apply to your specific life event.

**See Direct Bill.

Required Documents

Documentation is required to verify any enrolled dependents. If you do not provide the required documentation as verification of dependent status, your dependent will be ineligible for coverage. Contact the Benefits Service Center at 833-4LA-WELL with any questions.

Where to Send Required Documents
There are several ways to submit required documents: 

Online: Log in to the Benefits Central Portal and upload your documents. 

Email or Fax: Write your name and employee ID number on each document and send. 

Email: per.empbenefits@lacity.org

Fax: 213-978-1623 

Mail: LAwell Benefits Service Center PO Box 530477 St. Petersburg, FL 33747-4077 

In person: Deliver to the drop box outside the Employee Benefits Division at: 

Los Angeles City Hall
200 N Spring Street, Room 867
Los Angeles, CA 90012