Fort Worth Firefighter's Workers' Comp Fight

0:00It's April 7th. I'm Cory with the story, and this is Dallas News Today, local news powered by AI. A Fort Worth firefighter named Halbrison got trapped under a collapsing garage during a two-alarm house fire on the city's historic South Side last. September, he suffered crushing injuries and severe burns, and now he's recovering at home with ongoing therapy and more surgeries ahead. His family's social media posts spotlighted delays and denials from the workers' compensation system. The process agonizing, even though he's finally getting the care he needs. Earlier this week, the city's human resources director laid out a 20-page overview of how workers' compensation is meant to work for injured first, responders. The focus is on treating employees with dignity, delivering timely medical care, and providing compensation when folks get hurt on the job. Councilmember Charlie Lawersdorf says there's no bad intent in the setup, but he's heard for more than 31 responders with similar. Plants, making a clear changes are overdue.

1:02City leaders announced plans for better accountability and two new support roles to guide employees through the claims maze. Halbrison views the council meeting as a solid first step forward. Meanwhile, across North Texas, claims go through city insurance carriers or third-party admins with appeals to the Texas Department of Insurance IF. Denied. State Representative Jared Patterson keeps pushing for reforms, noting cities hold the contracts, and similar finger pointing shows up in other local governments too. This push for fixes is just getting started.