Court: Fatal Heart Attack Compensable, Worker's Adult Son Qualifies as Beneficiary

An Illinois appeals court overturned the denial of death benefits to a deceased worker’s adult son, finding that the father's fatal heart attack was compensable and that the son was an eligible survivor. Richard Cronk suffered a fatal heart attack in December 2006 while working as a construction manager for Kimball Hill Homes. The coroner’s report indicated that Cronk had complained of difficulty breathing while shoveling snow at a building site. Co-workers summoned paramedics, who observed Cronk alert and oriented, sitting in his truck. Cronk then went into cardiac arre...