[AnotherUnixGeek]

Some 80 percent of firefighters and chiefs who retired last year -- four out of every five -- did so on disability.

Just nauseating. I know firefighting can be a dangerous job and I appreciate the guys who do it but that doesn't entitle them to defraud taxpayers and make a mockery of the concept of "disability". Every single one of these firefighters needs to be subjected to thorough physical examinations by independent medical teams and the guys who can't back up their claim need to be tossed off the disability roles and prosecuted.

[Roccus]

A Police Officer Who Suffered A Heart Attack After Retiring Is Eligible For Higher Pension

-As reported on by The Chief-Leader on July 30, 2004.

A former NYPD Detective who suffered a heart attack a year after retiring from the Police Department may be eligible for a higher-paying pension, according to the Manhattan Supreme Court. The Police Pension Fund was ordered to reconsider Stefanie Rich's application for an accidental disability pension, based on the former NYPD Detective's diagnosis of coronary artery disease following her February 2001 heart attack. Rich s attorney Jeffrey L. Goldberg, successfully petitioned the Court and the retired Detective has been cleared to receive a larger pension under the state s "heart bill". Under the heart bill, an officer s heart disease is presumed to have resulted from the stress of the job unless the city can prove otherwise. The Pension Fund s trustees contended that Ms. Rich was ineligible for the benefit because at the time she retired, she hadn t shown signs of being disabled by the arterial blockage that later contributed to her attack.

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NYPD Member Who Suffered Heart Attack After Retiring Receives Accident Disability Pension

-As reported in The Chief-Leader on August 28, 2004.

Detective Stephanie Rich retired from the NYPD in February 2000, at age 47. At that time she complained of shortness of breath that left her unable to climb stairs or walk more than a city block. The Detective requested a pension under the state law known as the heart bill, which would provide her a tax-free pension worth 75 percent of her final salary. The NYPD wanted to retire her with an ordinary disability pension, a taxable benefit worth half her annual salary but the Police Pension Fund s Medical Board found her not disabled. On February 16, 2001, Rich suffered a severe heart attack that nearly killed her. Thereafter her attorney Jeffrey L. Goldberg, was victorious in the Manhattan Supreme Court, and Rich s pension application was remanded to the Police Pension Fund for further consideration. The former detective s application was quietly scheduled for review this month, and the board approved it without asking for additional medial evidence.