Hermosa Beach : Fire Chief’s Story Rebutted

City Manager Gregory Meyer denied this week that he gave former Fire Chief Ronald D. Simmons the go-ahead to change the wedding date on Simmons’ health insurance form.

Simmons, who quit last July after four years as chief, said last week that he changed his wedding date from July 28, 1979, to Sept. 8, 1984, on a health insurance enrollment form used to get coverage for his wife, Barbara Myer, after he talked to Meyer.

“I am not going to make any comment on what happened through the press,” Meyer said. “I don’t believe it is an accurate representation of what occurred.”

Personnel Director Robert Blackwood has launched an investigation to determine why Simmons filed two change-of-enrollment forms. On the first form, submitted in July, 1984, Simmons listed the 1979 wedding date. Two months later, Simmons filed a second form listing the 1984 date.

Simmons’ wife did not get coverage after the first form was filed, but she did get coverage when the second form was filed with the new wedding date, Blackwood said. The 1979 date was the correct one, Simmons said last week.