Bill Would Create Cancer Screening Program for Firefighters

Pennsylvania lawmakers are proposing a special fund to cover annual cancer screenings not paid for by firefighters' health insurance policies. SB 1398, by Sen. Camera Bartolotta, R-Beaver, would establish the Firefighter Cancer Screening Program within the Department of Insurance to pay for the screenings. Bartolotta said in a statement that though firefighters work in dangerous conditions, one of the greatest threats they face is repeated exposure to cancer-causing chemicals. "Cancer is now one of the leading causes of firefighter line-of-duty deaths," she said. "Ye...