Bedford firefighter trying to get workers’ compensation

A veteran firefighter has been trying for two years — since he first was diagnosed with colon cancer — to get workers’ compensation benefits from the city where he has fought fires and answered medical calls for more than 20 years.

Keith Long, 51, whose cancer has spread to his liver and lungs, contends that his disease is a work-related injury because firefighters are exposed to cancer-causing substances in the course of their jobs. He also contends the city should have pre-screened firefighters for cancer.

The Texas Municipal League, which handles workers’ compensation insurance for the city, contends the cancer is not work-related.

Long declined to be interviewed and referred all questions to attorney Kay Goggin of Dallas, who is handling his workers’ compensation appeal.

“We do our job knowing the risks,” Long said through Goggin in an email. “But if the city of Bedford had pre-screenings, this could have been caught earlier, when I could have had treatment and even a cure.”

Besides financial compensation, Long wants to take time off for treatments without using sick or vacation time. Both would be covered under workers’ compensation.

He and the Bedford Professional Firefighters Association argue that firefighters are exposed to carcinogens such as smoke, chemicals, heat and diesel exhaust, increasing their risk of getting cancer.

The municipal league denied the claim in 2013 after Long was diagnosed. He appealed the decision and his case will be heard by an administrative law judge on Sept. 2.

The Bedford Professional Firefighter’s Association launched a campaign on Facebook on Aug. 11, asking for support for Long. As of Tuesday, the page had attracted more than 2,000 viewers.

“I am asking for your help to create awareness, and great hope that we can get acknowledgment that Keith’s cancer was caused by selfless acts in his daily duties as a firefighter/paramedic,” association president Chris Conner wrote on Facebook.

Goggin said that Long is “doing as well as anybody could be who has done chemo for a year and a half.”

City Manager Roger Gibson did not return a phone call from the Star-Telegram seeking comment but said in an emailed statement, “The City is aware of this issue. The employee is receiving benefits through City sponsored insurance; however, due to HIPAA Laws our ability to provide a more detailed response is limited at this time. Our thoughts and concerns continue to be with the employee and his family.”

The association asked Gibson to consider reversing the league’s decision. But in an email provided to the Star-Telegram by former association president Alex Hardy, Gibson wrote, “I am certainly sympathetic to Keith's situation. However, as the City Manager, I cannot force the acceptance of Keith’s claim. After reviewing and educating myself to this process, I do feel that the City has in place a process afforded Keith, and all City employees that is both fair and thorough.”

Mike Bratcher, workers’ compensation claims manager for the Texas Municipal League, said the league handles Bedford’s workers’ comp through an interlocal agreement.

The league issued a press release saying, in part: “Workers' compensation is designed to only provide coverage for work-related injuries, not ordinary diseases of life. The law provides that if the International Agency for Research on Cancer has determined the cancer as one that may be caused by fighting fires, it is presumed to be work-related. Mr. Long's colon cancer is not one of those cancers determined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as possibly being caused by fighting fires.”

Under the presumptive disability law in Texas, firefighters and others are presumed to have developed cancer in the course of their jobs under certain conditions.

One of the conditions is that the type of cancer must be caused “by exposure to heat, smoke, radiation or a known or suspected carcinogen as determined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer,” the law states.

Earlier this year, the Legislature further amended the law to require insurance carriers to provide written evidence as to why claims were denied under the new law. The amended law took effect May 29, but the legislation only applies to claims filed after that date.

Goggin said that she disagrees with the league’s interpretation of the law.

“Asbestos is a known cause of colon cancer,” she said.

Without workers’ compensation, Goggin said Long is responsible for all co-pays. She said his insurance doesn’t cover lost wages or impairments, which would be covered under workers’ compensation.

Long continues to work

Long was hired by Bedford as a firefighter in 1993.

In January 2013, he came home from a shift with a pain in his side, hurting enough that his wife made a doctor’s appointment for him.

“He thought maybe gall bladder, but a sonogram and immediate tests revealed stage IV colon cancer, which had metastasized to his liver and even his lungs,” Goggin said. “He has … undergone aggressive chemotherapy and consulted with cancer specialists across the country.”

Long has had surgeries and continues to work, missing some days after new rounds of chemotherapy. But he uses personal days or fellow firefighters work his shift in his name.

Goggin said she believes Long’s evidence meets the requirements for proof that his cancer was work-related.

“He worked as a firefighter for more than five years, he has a long history of responding to fires and hazmat calls, he nor his wife smoked, he did not have cancer before starting this job, he does not have the risk factors that would be causes for cancer, and radiation exposure and asbestos are known risk factors for his type of cancer,” Goggin said. “The insurance carrier has the right to rebut the legal presumption, but in this case I believe their case is weak.”

This story was originally published August 19, 2015 at 4:02 PM with the headline "Bedford firefighter trying to get workers’ compensation."