According to WFAA News 8 in Dallas, a former firefighter is suing the city of University Park, alleging the town refuses to pay for an injury he sustained on the job.
The 31-year-old filed a lawsuit against University Park seeking up to $1 million in damages to help pay for the treatment of a back injury he suffered while working.
“I pretty much live in pain all the time,” he told News 8. “I feel like I have been kind of betrayed.”
The former firefighter said he hurt his back trying to lift a patient up on a stretcher while responding to a medical call in October of 2011. He had lifted countless patients since joining the force in 2005, but this time it somehow threw out his back. Doctors told the 31-year-old he had several herniated discs.
At first, he received some physical therapy sessions, but doctors decided he would need more extensive treatment, including spinal injections, to relieve the pain.
At that point, the 31-year-old said his former employers resisted paying for treatment and eventually fired him. Five months after the injury, the lawsuit alleges that University Park (which is self-insured) stopped paying workers’ compensation benefits and for their former employee’s treatment.
“My doctors keep sending letters and more literature showing I need these different treatments, and they just keep getting denied,” the 31-year-old said. “All I want to do is get back to work. I’m tired of hurting. I want to get back to my old self.”
An Employer’s Responsibility to Employees and Workers’ Compensation
It is despicable that the city of University Park is denying their own employee workers’ compensation after his painful accident. Employers have an obligation to financially take care of their employees after they sustain a workplace injury.
If you live in Austin and have been injured on the job, contact our Austin workers’ compensation attorney today at (512) 474-8346 to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation.
The Law Offices of Aaron Allison – Austin Workers’ Compensation Attorney
