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Pushing for Presumptive Protections
  
From left: Puyallup, WA Local 726 member Dave Potter, who died from Leukemia;
Portland, OR Local 43 member Steve Higley, who died from non-Hodgkins lymphoma; and retired Portland, OR
Local 43 member William Humbert, whose cancer is currently in remission. In all three cases, the cancers
resulted from on-the-job exposure.
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Dave Potter had been a dedicated fire fighter in Puyallup,
Washington, for 16 years in 2005 when he learned he had T-cell Lymphocytic
Leukemia. Potter contracted the cancer as a result of dangerous toxins he had
been exposed to on the job.
Bill
Humbert, a retired Portland, OR Local 43 fire fighter, had been on the job 10
years when he found a lump on his neck that turned out to be non-Hodgkins
Lymphoma. He, too, was sick due to on-the-job exposure.
At the time, neither Washington nor Oregon had enacted
presumptive laws. Potter died before he received the treatment he needed.
Humbert’s cancer is
currently in remission, and he is advocating on behalf of other fire fighters to
pass presumptive legislation in Oregon.
Meanwhile, fire fighters in Washington can hope there will be no
more stories like Dave Potter’s. The state’s presumptive laws were amended in
April to include additional cancers, thanks to aggressive lobbying by the
Washington State Council of Fire Fighters (WSCFF) and expert testimony from the
IAFF. The IAFF also helped pass similar legislation in Colorado and Vermont, and
has testified in four more states: Oregon, Connecticut, Missouri and Michigan.
And, Illinois added presumptive legislation for workers compensation in May.
Florida and North Carolina are also working to pass presumptive legislation for
its fire fighters.
“An astounding 90 percent of fire fighter deaths are due to
occupationally related illnesses,” says IAFF General President Harold
Schaitberger. “Our members put their lives on the line every day to protect
their communities, and shouldn’t have to worry what will happen to them and
their families if they get sick. Yet some states still do not provide
presumptive protections for fire fighters who contract certain cancers and other
illnesses in the course of their duties.”
More than 40 states and six provinces (click
here to read about Ontario) currently recognize certain illnesses as
occupational hazards of fire fighting and have enacted laws presuming these
illnesses are job-related, safeguarding workers compensation and retirement
disability benefits for fire fighters.
The Washington State Council of Fire Fighters worked
closely with the fire chiefs and other groups to pass presumptive legislation. Washington
Governor Christine Gregoire signed the bill in April.
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Washington, Governor Christine Gregoire signed a bill to amend the state’s
current presumptive laws to include heart attacks and add prostate cancer,
colorectal cancer, multiple myeloma and testicular cancer to the list of
presumed cancers. “Our ongoing relationships with the Washington Fire Chiefs and
other groups with great political influence was what really led to our success,”
says Kelly Fox, president of WSCFF. “That and expert testimony from the IAFF.”
This legislation could have saved Dave Potter’s life. “He died
because he needed a bone marrow transplant, and could not afford the $60,000
cost of the procedure,” explains Keven Rojecki, legislative liaison for WSCFF.
“He died because his workers compensation claim was denied.”
Testifying in Washington, Dr. Erika Olson, a resident physician
at Johns Hopkins University and for the IAFF, said, “Fire fighters face the
possibility of death or injury every time they respond to an alarm. While risk
may be part of the profession, fire fighter deaths and injuries should not be
accepted as part of the job.”
However, neighboring Oregon State Fire Fighters Council (OSFFC)
is facing opposition to its efforts to pass presumptive legislation from an
unexpected adversary: the state’s fire chiefs. Kelly Bach, president of the
OSFFC, notes, “It is unfortunate that the Chiefs cannot support their fire
fighters.”
In 2006, researchers at the University of Cincinnati evaluated
data from 32 previously published studies, and found that fire fighters are
twice as likely as the general population to develop testicular cancer, 50
percent more likely to develop multiple myeloma or non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and
28 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer.
In Oregon, the fire chiefs want to amend the proposed
legislation to omit all but three of the cancers identified in the University of
Cincinnati study.
In the last 10 years, more than 100 fire fighters have been diagnosed with
cancer in Oregon. With 2,800 IAFF members in the entire state, that number is
significant. Proposed legislation, currently in the state senate, would presume
the following cancers to be job related for fire fighters: brain cancer, colon
cancer, stomach cancer, testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and multiple myeloma
or non-Hodgkins Lymphoma.
Carolyn Higley’s husband, Steve, was a member of Local 43 when
he died from non-Hodgkins Lymphoma in December 2004. Diagnosed in October 2003,
it wasn’t until September 2004 that the workers compensation board determined
that Higley’s cancer was caused by on-the-job exposure.
“I am thankful for the benefits,” says Carolyn Higley, “but I’d
rather have my husband back.” Had presumptive legislation been in place, it
would have alleviated much of the stress of worrying about sick leave, bills and
benefits. “Those are the last things you want to think about when you go through
something like this,” she says.
Vermont Governor Jim Douglas signed the state's presumptive bill at a
Montpelier fire station where he was joined by PFFV President Matt Vinci.
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Vermont, a new law signed by Governor Jim Douglas on May 22, 2007, covers
leukemia, lymphoma or multiple myeloma, and cancers originating in the bladder,
brain, colon, gastrointestinal tract, kidney, liver, pancreas, skin or
testicles. Fire fighters diagnosed with one of the presumed cancers are eligible
for benefits for up to 10 years after retirement.
“Over the last 10 years, we have seen a definite increase in the
number of Vermont fire fighters getting cancer,” says Matt Vinci, president of
PFFV. Vermont won presumptive heart legislation three years ago, and PFFV has
since been working to get the same protections for cancer. Vinci credits PFFV
political action and support from the IAFF and IAFF 3rd District Vice President
Mike Mullane for securing the votes in the state House and Senate. Championing
the bill in the
state legislature were the bill’s chief sponsor, Senator Vince Illuzzi (R), and
Representative Helen Head (D).
With his signature on the legislation pending, IAFF President
Schaitberger, DVP Mullane and PFFV President Vinci met with Governor Douglas
during the Professional Fire Fighters of Vermont state convention earlier in
May. “The governor had reservations about signing the bill,” says Schaitberger.
“But we made it clear to Governor Douglas that he needed to do the right thing
and protect fire fighters in his state.” Following the meeting, Douglas promised
to sign the legislation. “He made good on that promise,” Schaitberger says.
Meanwhile, in Colorado, thanks to aggressive lobbying efforts by
IAFF 9th District Vice President Randy Atkinson, the Colorado Professional Fire
Fighters (CPFF) and the IAFF, Colorado Governor Bill Ritter signed presumptive
legislation on May 17, 2007. The bill was sponsored by Senator Joan Fitz-Gerald
(D) and Representative Mike Cerbo (D).
The Workers Compensation Act of Colorado now provides benefits
to fire fighters who contract cancer of the brain, skin, digestive system,
hematological system or genitourinary system as the result of on-the-job
exposures. Claims can only be denied if proven the fire fighter had a
pre-existing condition. “This was a tough battle,” says Atkinson. “We could not
have done it without the IAFF’s assistance and expert testimony.” Dr. Virginia
Weaver, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of
Public Health, testified on behalf of CPFF.
In other states, the fight for presumptive protections
continues. The Uniformed Professional Fire Fighters Association of Connecticut
hopes to pass legislation that would ensure that occupational illnesses are
presumed job related for the purposes of workers compensation and disability
retirement. However, the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities is opposing
the bill, maintaining it will cause a financial strain on the state’s workers
compensation and municipality budget.
The Connecticut bill has made its way through several house
committees and is on its way to the house floor for consideration. If current
language stays intact, some protections would be in place for all strains of
hepatitis, meningitis, tuberculosis, heart disease, myeloma, non-Hodgkin’s
Lymphoma, prostate cancer and testicular cancer.
As scientific evidence continues to demonstrate the increased
risk for heart disease, lung disease, cancer and infectious diseases among fire
fighters and emergency medical responders, the IAFF encourages its affiliates to
work with state and provincial legislatures to enact presumptive laws and to
update and enhance existing legislation where laws vary or provide limited
benefits.
The IAFF has developed a database of current presumptive
disability provisions in the United States and Canada.
Click here to review the presumptive
disability provision in your state or province.
In addition, the IAFF has made fire fighter presumptive
legislation a focus of its lobbying efforts and is developing an international
database of fire fighters with heart disease, lung disease, infectious disease
and cancer in order to actively track statistics for these illnesses in fire
fighters. This statistical information — minus any identifying data — is
available to IAFF members for use in lobbying for presumptive disability laws.
For more information, contact the IAFF Division of Occupational
Health and Safety at (202) 824-1571.
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