PHILADELPHIA — For years, Philadelphia police officials had been alarmed by an internal list that tracked the number of officers who were out of work but still getting paid.
The list, updated every Monday, first grew by dozens of names. Then by hundreds.
Cops stayed out longer, with injured-on-duty claims, while continuing to collect their full paychecks — plus a 20% raise, in the form of tax breaks provided by Pennsylvania's Heart and Lung Act, a generous disability benefit for first responders.
