Story Archive

Bastard Stepchildren Too

“On my son’s last two runs, the second-to-last run a little girl died in my son’s arms, and he struggled very bad with that,” says Catherine Murphy Hardin of her paramedic son during testimony to the Ohio House of Representatives. The call after that was a car crash, and a severely injured driver was hanging from his seat belt. When Trever Murphy “was able to finally release this gentlemen from his seat belt,” she continued, “he fell dead in his arms, and that devastated my son. It completely broke him.” Shortly after, her son committed suicide; he was 28. The state House has amended the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation budget to allow police officers, firefighters, and medics to get coverage for post-traumatic stress disorder without having a physical injury — complying with the diagnostic criteria for PTSD — but the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association, the Ohio Township Association, and other business groups oppose the proposed change in the law, which currently requires a physical injury to accompany a PTSD claim. “The potential inroads into the program are endless,” complains Rob Brundrett, the Director of Policy Services at the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association, which, he says, will increase business costs. The risk for PTSD for paramedics is higher than for soldiers who have seen combat. (RC/Columbus Dispatch) ...Business associations don’t care about medics ...until they need to call 911 for a critically ill or injured family member.