T
treyl
Guest
Although I am a PA resident, this question pertains to MA law. My 32-year-old husband recently passed away from complications of a bone marrow transplant. He had cancer and I was his caregiver for a year. We were married 3 days prior to his transplant; he passed away 5 weeks later. My husband notified his company in MA of our engagement and then of our marriage 2 weeks later (he had been out of work for over 8 months). After my husband passed away, I contacted the HR department. I learned that my husband's policy was for $164,000. I wasn't given any other information until his policy was discussed with their legal team. I was later informed the policy had not been changed in 13 years and would go to the named beneficiary, his mother. I questioned the company why he was not told he had to sign new forms (my husband was under the impression that it automatically changes to your spouse, such as 401K) and why these forms (plus medical forms) had not been sent to him. The HR manager told me when she spoke to my husband, she felt "uncomfortable" bringing up this topic because he was about to undergo a dangerous medical procedure. She admitted that she knew his forms were outdated when he notified her of our marriage. She added that she was sure his mother would honor her son's wishes with regards to the policy. His family kept the money. This was of no surprise to me. His entire family were vacationing at the beach, an hour away, while my husband stopped breathing and was placed on a respirator. He was on the respirator for 10 days before his family came. My question is, can his company be held accountable?