Wednesday, February 13, 2013

** North Carolina combat medic wins big on game show

** Alberta bill guarantees responder workers comp benefits for PTSD

UNITED STATES NEWS

** A North Carolina combat medic, competing on the game show Wheel of Fortune, won $51,208 in cash and prizes on January 30. That is the word from the Fort Bragg Patch (Kelly Twedell/February 9) which said Fort Bragg based staff sergeant Jeff Bell also took home a cruise to Alaska on the Disney Cruise Line. Bell and his wife Stacy were contestants during the show’s Making Disney Memories Week. They originally auditioned last year at Fayetteville’s Wheelmobile event.

CANADA NEWS

** Alberta paramedics, seeking guaranteed workers’ compensation benefits for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), will no longer have to prove their affliction occurred as a result of their job. That is the word from the Winnipeg Free Press (Larry Kusch/February 11) which said a new law passed December 10th in the province makes the assumption the disorder is job related. However, an evaluation by either a doctor or psychologist is a prerequisite to coverage. Associate Minister for disability services and the Workers Compensation Act Frank Oberle said the bill is a way to recognize the hard and risky work first responders do. The statute covers paramedics, police, and firefighters.