Police officers pay into the Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA). PERA offers a number of benefits to police officers who pay into PERA, one of which is a regular retirement pension. Under PERA once an officer reaches age 55 with at least 20 years of service they are eligible for a full pension which is 60% of their high five. While an officer can consider an early retirement starting at age 50 there can be significant penalties or other limitations on the benefits they would receive. In short, whether an officer works for Minneapolis, St. Paul or another department, retiring under PERA is simply not an option for many of Minnesota’s police officers.

Working as a paramedic, EMT or EMS poses inherent dangers, especially during the Coronavirus pandemic. As part of your duties, you are required to go into homes that are not your own and administer hands-on medical assistance to individuals in need.

As part of the PERA application process, your application gets submitted to Managed Medical Review Organization (MMRO). They are a third-party company that PERA contracts with to review all of your medical records with them.

As Coronavirus-related restrictions phase-out, more Minnesotans, including a significant number of healthcare workers, including nurses, are contracting Coronavirus (COVID-19). In fact, on May 20, 2020, the Star Tribune reported that “health care workers constitute 1,949 of Minnesota’s 17,029 lab-confirmed cases of COVID-19.” [1]