Two Bills Would Expand Cancer Coverage for Firefighters

Two bills filed this week would make it easier for Alabama firefighters and retired firefighters to have their medical expenses covered when diagnosed with cancer. House Bill 2, introduced by state Rep. James Hanes, a former firefighter himself, would create a rebuttable presumption that non-smoking fighters' cancers are work-related. Unlike a number of other states' presumption laws, the bill does not name the types of cancers that would be presumed to be the result of a firefighter's hazardous duties. The firefighter would have to show that he or she was exposed t...