FIREMEN ‑- PENSIONS ‑- DISABILITY ‑- FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICTS ‑- MEDICAL BENEFITS 1.  The obligation imposed by RCW 41.18.060 to provide medical care for a fireman who has been disabled cannot be fulfilled by the purchase of a medical insurance policy.  2.   The Firemen's Pension Board established pursuant to RCW 41.18.015 may exercise some discretion in specifying authorized care providers if it does so through properly established procedures.

MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS ‑- CITIES AND TOWNS ‑- COUNTIES ‑- DISTRICTS ‑- EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES ‑- MEDICAL BENEFITS ‑- SELF-FUNDING OF EMPLOYEE HEALTH BENEFITS BY LOCAL GOVERNMENT Charter counties, charter cities, code cities and municipal corporations, in the exercise of proprietary functions, have broad legislative power that empowers them to self-fund their employee health and welfare benefits.  Other municipal corporations have only the powers expressly granted by the Legislature or necessarily or fairly implied in or incident to the powers expressly granted.  These municipal corporations do not have the authority to self-fund their employees' health and welfare benefits.

RESTRICTIONS ON MEDICAL COVERAGE BY STATE LICENSED HEALTH MAINTENANCE ORGANIZATIONS It is not a violation of RCW 41.05.025(2) for the State Employees' Insurance Board (SEIB) to provide employees covered by SEIB plans the option of coverage by a health maintenance organization (HMO) which restricts the availability of the services of licensed podiatrists, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists, osteopaths, physical therapists, psychologists, or registered nurses to those provided either directly through the HMO or upon referral by a primary care physician employed by the HMO.

LIABILITY FOR COSTS OF NURSING HOME CARE FOR RETIRED LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND FIREFIGHTERS RCW 41.26.150 makes the counties responsible for the costs of nursing home care for those individuals retired from county employment under the Law Enforcement Officers' and Fire Fighters' Act for so long as nursing home confinement is required. The county may reduce the amount paid monthly to a retiree by the amount currently received from another source as reimbursement for medical services but not for those monies received by the retiree for other purposes such as a general retirement allowance.