Victims of Crime Act Benefits

Survivor Benefits

What is the Victims of Crime program?  The U. S. Department of Justice (DOJ) supports state programs to provide compensation andassistance to victims of federal and state crimes.  For firefighters, this would generally include deaths that involved arson, homicide, or othercrimes. What types of benefits are available to families of firefighters killed in the line […]

Veterans’ Administration Benefits

Survivor Benefits

What does the Veterans’ Administration benefit include? Survivors may be eligible for a lump sum payment of $300 for burial expenses, an allowance of $300 toward a burial plot, burial in a national cemetery, a government headstone or marker, and a burial flag. Who administers the program? The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. What determines eligibility? […]

Social Security

Survivor Benefits

Who is eligible for Social Security? Anyone who has worked and paid Social Security taxes has earned benefits for his or her family. The amount of work (quarters) needed to make survivors eligible depends upon the worker’s age at death. Who administers the program? The program is administered by the U. S. Social Security Administration. What […]

Health Insurance – Cobra

Survivor Benefits

What is COBRA? A federal law known as COBRA guarantees that the employer of a public safety officer who dies in the line of duty must make the same type of health insurance available to the spouse and dependent children as was provided prior to the death. Who is eligible? In order for survivors to […]