Obama Offers Federal Health Coverage to Seasonal Firefighters

Once again Obama sees a problem and takes BOLD, DECISIVE action to fix it.

Thanks Obama.

Obama directs that wildland firefighters be offered health insurance
By Allison Sherry The Denver Post The Denver Post
Posted: DenverPost.com


WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has directed federal officials to offer seasonal firefighters the option of purchasing federal health insurance coverage, White House officials told The Denver Post Tuesday.

On a a recent trip to Colorado Springs, the president was apparently moved by the men and women firefighters he met, senior administration officials said in an interview Tuesday. When he returned to Washington, he told his cabinet that he wanted to "find a solution" for the hundreds of workers toiling in dangerous conditions without the option to buy in to federal insurance insurance.

The temporary seasonal workers who descend into fire zones are usually young people who work sundry outdoor jobs, depending on the season. Some pick up contract work removing trees in the fall or they work at ski areas in the winter. Many are college students.

But because they are not full-time U.S. Forest Service employees, they previously did not have the option of purchasing federal health insurance.

Under a directive that will be made in the "near future" from the Office of Personnel Management, this group will get that option by the end of this month, White House officials said.

Not yet known is how many people are eligible and how long they will be able to qualify for the federal insurance program, since many move on to other jobs by the time the first snow falls.

The announcement from the White House comes the same day GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is stumping around Colorado, Grand Junction and then Colorado Springs.

Details of the president's directive was shared with The Denver Post with an agreement that details weren't shared with others until publication.

This is the most recent example of Obama sidestepping Congress in order to get policy accomplished.

Just last month, the president ordered the Department of Homeland Security to provide young illegal immigrants who graduated from American high schools work visas. He said in a speech announcing the decision he was frustrated that Congress had not sent him a Dream Act to sign.

Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Denver, introduced legislation Tuesday that would provide health insurance for firefighters and their families.

Though the proposed legislation has some early bipartisan support, it has an uncertain path to victory since Congress only has another few weeks of true productivity before November.

A June Denver Post story described firefighters' desire for health insurance from the front lines during the height of the High Park Fire. An Internet petition gathered 100,000 signatures in support of the idea and several firefighters, on lunch breaks, called around to advocates and lawmakers to promote it.

http://www.denverpost.com/breakingn...at-wildland-firefighters-get-health-insurance

 

He was responding to this problem-


Uninsured and fighting blazes: Welcome to the life of a federal firefighter
By Sarah Kliff , Updated: June 27, 2012Right now, wildfires of “epic proportions” are tearing through the Colorado forests.

Thousands of federal firefighters charged with taming the blazes do not have health insurance.

That includes 27-year-old John Lauer. He’s a member of a Colorado-based “hotshot” crew, one of the teams of the most skilled federal fighters that gets deployed where fires are the worst. In six years, he has fought fires in Utah, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota – “Pretty much every state west of the Mississippi,” Lauer says. “Alaska too, once.”

Of all the jobs where you might want health insurance, firefighting near certainly ranks near the top of the list. Firefighters spend two-week shifts working 18 hour days in dangerous conditions. Some develop breathing problems due to smoke inhalation.

But many federal firefighters are temporary employees, who only work six months out of the year (although as Lauer describes it, they can often work a full year’s worth of hours with the long shifts). Under federal regulations, temporary employees of the Forest Service do not receive benefits. That means no health care and no retirement pension.

“A lot of them are not making a lot,” says Bill Dougan, president of the National Federal of Federal Employees. “The only way they can afford insurance is if they have a spouse that might be able to get coverage under an employer. In some places that’s not an option.”

Dougan’s group represents all temporary federal firefighters; he estimates there are about 15,000 to 20,000 of them.

He worked himself as a firefighter for three decades before coming into his current position. He remembers being stationed in Eastern Washington, in the 1970s, and paying for his son’s birth out of pocket.

“God forbid there were any outstanding issues,” says Dougan. “I don’t know how we would have paid for it.”

The Affordable Care Act–if survives the Supreme Court Thursday–could help. It would guarantee access to health insurance for a firefighter who, for example, might have bronchitis. Many earn relatively low salaries, about $25,000 to $35,000 per year, meaning they would qualify for subsidies. If the law gets overturned, however, the firefighters stay in the same situation they’ve been in all along: Working a dangerous job and unable to afford coverage.

Lauer counts himself among the lucky ones on his crew; he has never had any serious health care needs. He skips out on preventive care, like regular check-ups, but hasn’t seen much harm. He’s looked at buying insurance but says it’s too expensive. Annual premiums for an individual policy hover around $2,777 in Colorado.

“It’s pretty pricey unless you can buy into a group policy,” he says.

The other guys on his crew have not been as lucky. Many are in their late 20s, and starting families. He’s a godfather to one of his coworker’s son, Rudy, who was born prematurely. He now has $70,000 in outstanding medical bills. Another friend is looking at $40,000 for some specialized tests on his newborn.

“He’s my godson, kind of family to me, and it just feels really unfair,” Lauer says. “I’ve seen all the stuff his father does. We’re dispatched from 6 a.m. until 10:30 p.m. Then we’re sleeping in the dirt. It can make you feel kind of haggard at times.”

Lauer has taken some steps to try and change that. Earlier this month he started circulating a petition on Change.org in support of health benefits for firefighters. It has about 112,000 signatures so far.

Here in the District, there’s some action too: Dougan’s group is drafting legislation that would give the Forest Service the authority to transfer some employees from temporary to permanent. That wouldn’t solve all the problems–the transfer would still be at the department’s discretion–but Dougan thinks it’s a step in the right direction.

The bill would also let temporary employees compete for new permanent positions, often only opened up to those who are already permanent employees. He estimates that extending these benefits would cost about $12 million annually.

“When you look at the total budget, the federal government doesn’t have calculators that round off that,” Dougan says.

That legislation is probably a far way off: Dougan’s group has not finished drafting the language. It certainly won’t come into effect this fire season. That means Lauer and his team will spend another summer fighting blazes without coverage, and keeping their fingers crossed for the best.

“It’s one of the things all temporary firefighters talk about,” Lauer says of the lack of health coverage. “As soon as you get out there, you become well aware there are no benefits. But you just keep going about your job, and doing what you’re being paid to do.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...to-the-life-of-a-federal-firefighter/?print=1

 

Bitter wingnut resents providing heroic public servants with healthcare.

I'm shocked.