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Legislation supported by North Country Sen. Griffo would provide coverage to firefighters diagnosed with cancer

Posted 1/26/17

The New York State Senate has again passed Sen. Joseph Griffo’s legislation that would expand medical coverage for volunteer firefighters who are diagnosed with various forms of cancer linked to …

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Legislation supported by North Country Sen. Griffo would provide coverage to firefighters diagnosed with cancer

Posted

The New York State Senate has again passed Sen. Joseph Griffo’s legislation that would expand medical coverage for volunteer firefighters who are diagnosed with various forms of cancer linked to their duties.

Griffo, a Republican from Rome, represents the St. Lawrence County towns of Massena, Brasher, Norfolk, Stockholm, Potsdam, Pierrepont, Russell, Clifton, Fine, and Pitcairn, plus Lewis and Oneida counties.

Unlike full-time career firefighters, volunteer firefighters across the state do not receive benefit coverage if they are diagnosed with cancer. Much of the toxic fire and smoke they are exposed to on a regular basis are known to cause many of the cancers these volunteers are later diagnosed with, Griffo said.

If signed into law, the bill would extend the existing Volunteer Firefighters’ Benefit Law (VFBL) to cover all instances of melanoma, as well as cancer of the digestive, hematological, lymphatic, urinary, prostate, neurological, breast and reproductive systems.

Griffo, in a press release, emphasized what he believes to be the most important provision of the law: “After a volunteer firefighter has entered the fire service upon successfully passing a physical examination that did not reveal any evidence of cancer, it will be presumed that any of the covered cancerous conditions that develop later are the result of that firefighter performing their duties,” the bill says.

This is the third year in a row the Senate has passed this bill and the earliest it has been approved by the Senate in any legislative year. The Assembly has not taken action on the bill.