Florida lawmakers will try once again this year to create a system to help a particular group with a higher risk of developing cancer: firefighters.
Florida CFO trying to create cancer benefit for firefighters
Would help mitigate cost of treatment, even with insurance
A similar bill failed to pass last yearThe Centers for Disease Control found in a study that firefighters are at a 15 percent greater risk of developing cancer than the average person.
The reason is becoming easier to understand.
“When [firefighters] are exposed to various chemicals that are in a fire, it’s more dangerous today than ever,” said Chief Otto Drozd of Orange County Fire Rescue. “If you look at household materials, while they were made from natural materials many years ago, there are all sorts of chemical formulations, and when a fire burns, that is absorbed through the skin.”
Those potential cancerous elements then spread from a firefighter’s suit to the truck they’re riding in, to the fire house, and even in their family’s own home.