The fluorescent lights of the human resources office seemed harsher than usual on that February afternoon when the corrections officer sat across from the warden and the regional manager, a union steward positioned at his side. After fourteen months of administrative leave, fourteen months of silence and uncertainty, the moment had arrived with bureaucratic efficiency. The warden slid a single sheet of paper across the table, explaining that the institution had decided to terminate his employment for cause, effective immediately. No elaboration followed regarding the nature of the cause, no explanation of what the fourteen-month investigation had uncovered, no disclosure of the evidence or conclusions that had led to this decisive moment. The officer's mind raced through questions he knew would not be answered, but one practical concern surfaced through the fog of shock. What about his health benefits, he asked, thinking of the prescription medications his family relied upon, the dental work his daughter had scheduled for the following week, the therapy appointments that had helped him survive the interminable uncertainty of the investigation period. The regional manager's response came with practiced assurance, delivered in a tone meant to convey both authority and finality. The employer would continue his health benefits through to the end of the month, she said, providing him time to arrange alternative coverage. The officer nodded, processing this small mercy amid the larger devastation. The union steward made a note. The meeting concluded. Three weeks later, when the officer's spouse attempted to fill a prescription at the pharmacy, the pharmacist returned from the back counter with unwelcome news. The coverage had been declined. A call to the benefits provider confirmed what the officer could scarcely believe. His coverage had been terminated effective immediately upon his termination date, not at month's end as promised. The medication cost three hundred and forty-seven dollars out of pocket that afternoon, and the officer left the pharmacy with a receipt that would become the first piece of evidence in what would develop into a distinct and separate legal claim from his termination grievance.