It was difficult enough when Velma Donahue lost her husband, Colorado State Trooper Cody Donahue in 2016, but to make matters worse, when her daughter got sick a few days later, Donahue was informed that they no longer had health insurance.
As The Denver Post reports, the confusion stemmed from a policy that ends family benefits, like health and dental insurance, at the end of the calendar month in which a state employee dies while at work. Donahue died on Nov. 25, 2016, when a truck struck him as he responded to a crash.
Donahue’s experience has prompted Colorado lawmakers to propose a bill that would allow families of fallen workers to keep their loved one’s benefits for a year.
The legislation only applies to state workers, not to employees of local governments and counties.
The bill unanimously passed a committee last week.