SPRINGDALE, Ark. — A veteran Ark. firefighter with terminal colorectal cancer is in a fight with state officials to receive his benefits.
Springdale Fire Department Captain Harold “Bud” Planchon has been a firefighter for 24 years and believes his cancer, which has spread to his liver, was caused by his many years fighting fires, according to the Arkansas Times.
Capt. Planchon’s doctors confirm that his on-job exposures to smoke and hazardous materials over his more than 20 years as a firefighter caused his cancer.
He is now battling with the Ark. Local Police and Fire Retirement System (LOPFI) to recognize his disability retirement claim, according to the article.
Ark. lacks a law that requires the state to accept that certain forms of cancer are caused by job-related exposure. More than 40 states in the nation have this law.
The Arkansas Times reports LOPFI has been dragging out Captain Planchon’s claim, asking for large amount of documentation to prove that his cancer was caused by his years of firefighting. LOPFI officials said Capt. Planchon’s doctors have not provided medical documentation on time.
LOPFI has also asked Captain Planchon to provide dates of which he was exposed to hazardous materials and for letters from doctors that explain how firefighting caused his cancer instead of his past as a Marine.
After falling ill, Capt. Planchon retired in Aug. 2011 and filed for disability retirement in June 2011. Because most Ark. firefighters don’t pay into social security and his claim is still in limbo, Capt. Planchon has not had an income since his retirement.
His claim has been filed as a “Duty Disability Retirement,” meaning that his disability was caused by his employment as a firefighter. His claim should be handled no differently than other claims, yet LOPFI has processed 47 other claims since his.
Capt. Planchon’s wife, Jane said that she thinks LOPFI is waiting for his husband to die so he doesn’t set a precedent for LOPFI to pay for future sick firefighters.
While Jane and fellow firefighters have protested LOPFI in support of Captain Planchon, Jane is not confident the issue will be resolved anytime soon as her request to speak at a LOPFI board meeting was denied and a call to the governor’s office yielded no help.