Bill would expand workers’ comp cancer presumption for NH firefighters

Senate measure widens definition of occupationally caused illness

January 26, 2023

Jeff Feingold,

Legislation filed in the New Hampshire Senate would make all types of cancer among firefighters a presumptive occupational disease eligible for workers’ compensation.

Under Senate Bill 71, sponsored by a bipartisan group of senators, cancer diagnoses in firefighters would be presumed to be occupationally caused, making active-duty, volunteer and retired fire department members eligible to collect comp benefits.

The bill would remove language from existing law that says firefighters diagnosed with cancer can only collect workers’ comp benefits if the type of cancer involved was caused by exposure to heat, radiation or a known carcinogen as defined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

The bill also calls for the creation of a commission to study workers’ comp in firefighter cancer cases.

Similar legislation has been introduced in other states, including Connecticut and Nebraska.

Categories: Health, Law, News

More news from NHBR:

(Opinion) PBM reform is the bipartisan solution patients need

Reform bill cosponsored by U.S. Sen. Maggie Hassan would break the link between PBM compensation and drug prices

NH employers may lower health costs by supporting better health for employees

Diabetes costs the U.S. economy approximately $413 billion annually, including more than $106 billion in lost productivity.

Cropped Shot Of Elderly Woman And Female Geriatric Social Worker

Report: NH’s caregivers need support

A new report from the AARP concludes there’s an urgent need to support the tens of thousands of New Hampshire residents who serve as caregivers to people close to them.

Pharmacy benefit manager reform is the bipartisan solution patients desperately need

The bipartisan Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) Price Transparency and Accountability would break the link between PBM compensation and drug price, and lower prescription costs, advocates say.

(Opinion) Protecting children’s mental health through collaborative care

In 2016, the New Hampshire Legislature enacted a system of care model for children’s behavioral health services, recognizing a critical gap: Children exposed to adverse childhood experiences and those with severe emotional disturbances were falling through the cracks of fragmented services.

New England Rural Health Association awarded $1.6m HRSA Northern Border RCORP grant

The award totals $1.6 million over four years and will support training, placement and sustainability efforts to strengthen the behavioral health workforce across rural Vermont and New Hampshire

Parkland to open standalone ER in Salem

A free-standing 24-hour emergency room operated by Parkland Medical Center was conditionally approved by planners Nov. 13

This bot makes bones

A process to create human tissue and bone through 3D printing won top honors at the NH Tech Alliance’s Product of the Year competition. The BioAssembly Bot 500, a robotic-based tissue fabrication and manufacturing platform, was developed by Advanced Solutions Life Sciences, a Louisville, Kentucky-based company whose research and development team is based in the Manchester Millyard.