By Sofia Saric
Chattanooga Times Free Press
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The Tennessee Supreme Court reinstated the denial of a former Chattanooga firefighter’s disability benefits, citing significant evidence” that the gory events causing his post-traumatic stress disorder were an expected part of the job.
Matthew Long was a Chattanooga firefighter for 15 years before being diagnosed with PTSD, according to the Monday opinion by the state’s highest court.
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“While he may not have expected to experience PTSD, that does not make the events themselves unexpected within his normal course of duties,” the opinion said. “There is little evidence that the events causing Mr. Long’s PTSD were ‘unexpected,’ and there is significant evidence that the events were expected.”
Long submitted a claim in June 2020 to the Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Fund for disability benefits but was refused, the opinion said. Fund administrators claimed Long failed to prove “the graphic nature of the accidents, injuries and death he encountered as a firefighter” were unexpected, as required by the fund’s policy.
He sought disability benefits for a mental health disorder alone, so he was required to establish his PTSD stemmed from a direct personal experience of a terrifying or horror-inducing event that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, the opinion said.
Long identified several events he responded to including an infant whose skull had been crushed in a car wreck and another child who was grievously injured after being trapped in a burning building.
The pension fund board argued those events failed to meet eligibility requirements, according to the opinion. Long tried to challenge the decision, and the case eventually reached the state’s highest court.
Tennessee Supreme Court justices heard appeal arguments from both parties in January and issued an opinion Monday that there was no evidence the board’s decision was a clear error in judgment or abuse of discretion.
Long claimed the board’s disability policy was ambiguous, according to the opinion, but it was not, the state’s top court ruled. All the events Long witnessed were horrifying but no evidence indicated they were unexpected.
The court ultimately found Long’s initial denial of benefits should be upheld. The case was sent back to Hamilton County Chancery Court for further proceedings consistent with its opinion.
James Williams, who is one of the attorneys representing the Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Fund, did not respond to a voicemail left at his law office.
Long’s attorney, Logan Davis, said by text the result of this decision is firefighters like Long will not receive the support they should. Mental health diagnoses are not any less real and deserving of support than a physical disability, she said.
It is a “sad day for Tennessee’s firefighters, police officers and all public servants” who dedicate their lives to protecting us, she said.
“The Tennessee Supreme Court’s decision sends a clear message to our first responders: When you sacrifice your mental health in service to your community, the system may not be there for you when you need it most, Davis said.
Should PTSD from repeated traumatic calls qualify as a line-of-duty disability even if those events are “expected” in firefighting? How should pension funds define “unexpected” for mental health claims?
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