May 24, 2004 - After more than three years in and out of court, the city of Orlando, Florida, has settled a bitter legal battle with Orlando Local 1365 over withholding vital medical information from terminally ill fire fighters.
Without admitting fault, the city has agreed to pay $600,000 to approximately 25 fire fighters and make fundamental changes to the way it manages the care of fire fighters who become injured or sick on the job.
The case began in 2001 when more than 25 fire fighters filed suit against the city of Orlando, claiming that a city-run medical clinic did not inform them of abnormal test results after routine medical exams in order to avoid paying large sums of money through its risk management group.
About 25 fire fighters learned they had heart problems, lung disease or potentially deadly hepatitis C after the clinic had known for years about these illnesses. Had the fire fighters been made aware of their test results, some may have been able to diagnose or prevent their conditions. City officials denied those claims and insisted that fire fighters were properly notified of their medical results.
Key to the settlement are changes in the way the city evaluates medical claims by fire fighters. In addition, for the first time, the city will hire a doctor to serve as medical director for fire fighters and to oversee every fire fighter injury and exposure to infectious disease. The city will also appoint an outside group to oversee workers compensation claims for the fire department.
