The Gamble

Two Massachusetts brothers who each lost a leg in the Boston Marathon bombing face losing their state health insurance if they cash the charity checks they received after the event.

J.P. and Paul Norden were injured by the second bomb explosion while standing near the finish line. Each received an identical check for $1.2 million from charity One Fund, which distributed some $60.9 million in donations after the attack.

While the payments are tax-free, cashing the checks would force the brothers off the state health insurance program for the poor, and force them to start buying their own medical insurance after year's end. The problem is that the costs of maintaining and replacing their prosthetic limbs—which wear out—for the rest of their lives could far outweigh the price of the checks.

Paul was a roofer prior to his injuries; brother J.P. drove a truck for the same company; neither knows what type of work they will be able to do once they're fully healed.