THEY HAVE YOUR BACK? Don’t Count On It.

Firefighter Close Calls

Wednesday, October 30, 2013 Did you see the Detroit FD movie “Burn”? If so, you know the story of FF Brendan Milewski, who on August 13, 2010, had his lie change forever. He was operating at a building fire and was hit with a massive chunk of limestone, and that basically exploded his seventh thoracic vertebra. He now lives the rest of his life as a T6 Paraplegic. Fortunately, his city takes care of Firefighters injured in the line of duty….forever. Nope.  

Which makes us wonder how many other Brendan Milewski’s are out there. Plenty.

Brendan recently got a letter saying that his healthcare, through the city of Detroit, was going to be terminated as of January 1, 2014, and that, if he doesn’t have another plan purchased by December 15th of this year, that he’ll have a gap in coverage. THEY ARE offering him a wopping $200 a month stipend to supplement the cost of purchasing his own health insurance. $200.00 a month. UFB.

You can read the entire story-and see video—below. What happened to him at that fire is beyond horrible. The fact that the city now writes him off is beyond WTF. But you may want to take a moment to find out what would happen to you if you are critically injured in the line of duty in your community. Remember-the LAST thing Brendan had on his mind was worrying about losing his healthcare coverage-something he relies on each and everyday-for his survival.

We’ve passed on numerous stories via The Secret List, since we started this in 1998, about “forgotten” Firefighters. Almost 10 years ago we wrote about the widow whose Firefighter husband was killed at a dwelling fire in Massachusetts. The towns voters rejected a referendum to pay for the family’s death benefits during the elections.

Yeah-the community voted NO. And yeah, recently, Detroit kicked Brendan to the curb.

We used to think that primarily volunteer, call or part-time firefighters need to worry-but that’s hardly the case these days. Normally career firefighters (and their representatives) are focused on making sure they have decent benefits in the event of injury or death. But this, as we’ve been told so many times, is the “new” normal.

While Firefighters don’t hesitate to respond when needed, those who we expect to respond to us-when we need help, may be a myth.

We’ve written about KY Fire Lt Arlie “Pooh” Hill who died a few days ago after suffering horrific burns. I was amongst those at the hospital with him and his family the next day. Guess who else was there? His Chief, his members, his STATE Fire Commission Executive Director and Commissioners and – this absolutely shocked me – a woman representing the Kentucky Bureau of Workers Comp.
WHO I asked her when she told me.
Yep-Kentucky Workers comp to – as she said “do whatever it takes to help the family get through this”.

I thought I was dreaming.

Nope. This woman, working with the Kentucky Fire Commission was there to sit with “Pooh’s” family and start the paperwork NOW. 48 hours after the fire, Kentucky Workers Comp came to OHIO, sat in the burn unit and took care of the family.

Kentucky Firefighters may not know how fortunate they are-especially the relationship the KY Fire Commission has created working with the KY BWC. That’s very VERY rare in our world. Workers comp usually exists to say NO…not “we are here to help…and will.” Absolutely amazing.

As a Firefighter, you go the training’s, the meetings, the details and all the other stuff you do and you probably assume that if something happened to you, you WOULD be taken care of from a benefits standpoint. If you lost your life, beside State and the Federal PSOB LODD Death Benefits, you would ASSUME that your city, township, fire company or district DOES have “some kind” of a plan to pick up… where you left off. You would think that “they” have your back… they certainly don’t have Brendan’s.

These “un-covered Firefighters” did what hundreds of thousands of Firefighters do every day: respond to “you name it” emergency calls. Proper protection as a Firefighter is essential such as decent training, apparatus, bunker gear, leadership, an organizational “survival attitude” and related tools. Focusing on firefighter survival, with “everyone coming home” through training and related tactical and command operational fire officers is the best way to minimize the “worry” of a firefighter getting injured or killed in the line of duty.

Now, assume that you have all that covered at your FD and still, one of your firefighters-or you, gets hurt or killed. WHAT IS THE PLAN? WHO HAS YOUR “BACK” ? WHAT COVERAGE DO “THEY” HAVE FOR YOU OR YOUR FAMILY?

Finding out that something you “expect to be there” …but isn’t, after you need it, can be devastating. Having it CHANGE, such as happened to Brendan… is a living nightmare.

Anyone who has ever been under insured or who found out that their insurance expired can relate. And it’s sad when your house floods or you car gets damaged. But it is not devastating. Devastating is when a FF is hurt or killed and the family, already traumatized finds out the “cupboard is bare.”

As firefighters, we do as much as we can do to help others without a whole lotta focus on “us.” That’s kinda what got this whole thing started back when Ben Franklin and those before him decided to create the fire service. Career, paid, part-paid, poorly paid, not often paid or unpaid volunteer firefighters–the fact is that Firefighters are willing to do “whatever it takes” to help those who need out help. And rarely do we worry about ourselves. Sure, we seem to be getting more focused in this business of being a bit smarter… and yeah-the needed changes are slow but they are happening. But we will still get hurt or killed and there will be those LODD’s and LODI’s that were not preventable. Most are. Some are not.

For just a few minutes, instead of worrying about your community as a Firefighter-start worrying about yourself and your family-as a Firefighter. Take a few minutes to ask the questions that relate to the above to your local or company President, Chief, Mayor, Council, Board or Commissioners. Simply put, find out what the plan is and what coverage’s you have at your FD, in the event that you are slightly injured, seriously injured, disabled or killed in the line of duty.
Ask’m what their definition of “line of duty” is?
Are there age requirements?
Who is covered… who isn’t?

Ask lots of questions to the right “administrative” people such as:
-How long are you covered if you are disabled for a long period of time?
-Is there any temporary or permanent disability plan?
-Who pays your medical bills?
-Do you have any “out of pocket” expenses?
-How will you family be sustained from a cash flow/income standpoint if you can’t go to your regular job?
-What if your city goes broke or has severe financial problems…is there an “outside” or supplemental plan that’s already paid up?

I am not talking just about your medical issues-I’m also talking about your regular paycheck. …Essentially, who picks up-when you are down. And then there is the life insurance issue, sure-you may get X amount from your personal life insurance, but what about your local coverage from your FD?
Does you FD provide anything?
Do you have 24 hour coverage that protects you both while operating as a Firefighter as well as your regular life?
Maybe it’s time for an overall personal review of your insurance coverage’s.

Don’t blow this off-it’s a big issue to understand fully what your “protection” and “coverage’s” will be when you are functioning as a Firefighter. Now is the time to ask the questions-while you are able to. Find out the answers now. Excellent insurance related coverage should not be looked at as some “extra” nice thing–these critical coverage’s should be insisted upon so that when you give up your time-and possibly your life, you can be sure that your organization DOES have your back.

HERE IS BRENDANS STORY: http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/23824525/a-face-to-detroits-bankruptcy-paralyzed-firefighter-to-lose-health-benefits#ixzz2jDIFHePr

http://www.firefighterclosecalls.com/news/fullstory/newsid/197179

Sent to us by Don B.