A Nebraska deputy who was shot late last year has lost his work-issued health insurance and is in a fight to get it back.
Deuel County dropped Deputy Mike Hutchinson, who continues to recover from four gunshot wounds sustained while serving an arrest warrant on Dec. 3, 2015, from its group plan on May 31, according to The Star Herald.
Hutchinson received letters in late May from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Nebraska and the Nebraska Association of County Officials stating that his coverage would be terminated. Officials said that Hutchinson's "reduction in hours of employment" triggered the termination.
During a meeting on Tuesday, Deuel County commissioners took no action on a request from Hutchinson that the county pay for the insurance during his recovery.
The matter is on the board's agenda for its meeting on June 21.
"I'm really disappointed in guys I believed in," Hutchinson told the newspaper following the meeting. "I made a commitment to them and to the people of Deuel County and they didn't stand by their commitment to me. They treated me like a hero, yet now I'm being penalized because I did my job. I was injured in the line of duty."
Hutchinson's Attorney Randy Fair encouraged the board to provide health insurance for the deputy and his wife, Karyl, until he can return to work by paying for either temporary group coverage -- known as COBRA -- or coverage through the federal marketplace.
"I know there can be concerns about legal obligations or contractual obligations to provide it, but sometimes you have to do what's right," Fair said. "He's still an employee. He'd work if he could. When you've been shot four times, it's a long road to recovery."
