Firefighters put their lives on the line every day when they go out for a call. Anything can happen. Even when they walk away from an incident, the consequences can be dire and long-lasting.
In addition to giving their time and energy and putting their lives at risk, volunteer firefighters keep taxes down. According to a recent report, volunteer firefighters save New York State municipalities over $3 billion annually. Locally, the use of volunteers in fire departments in Orange and Rockland counties saved taxpayers over $141 million and over $55 million, respectively.
Given all they do for us, we need to make sure these men and women are covered in case they get sick.