U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer (R-NE) recently introduced a bipartisan bill to reauthorize and increase federal funding for the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act of 2018, which authorized a registry that went online earlier this year to understand the risk of cancer among U.S. firefighters.
The Firefighter Cancer Registry Reauthorization Act of 2023, S. 2119, which Sen. Fischer cosponsored on June 22 alongside bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), would reauthorize the registry program and raise the authorized funding level from $2.5 million to $5.5 million for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.
“Our firefighters always have our backs when we need them the most. We need to do our part here in Congress to continue supporting them,” Sen. Fischer said on Tuesday. “Reauthorizing the Firefighter Cancer Registry will further shine a light on solutions to protect first responders from the risk of cancer.”
The original legislation directed the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop a database of firefighters diagnosed with cancer and to study the relationship between career-long exposure to dangerous fumes and toxins and the incidence of cancer in firefighters, according to a bill summary provided by Sen. Fischer’s staff.
Information from the registry can be used to develop better protective gear and prevention techniques, and the additional funding level proposed under S. 2119 would support cybersecurity and encryption measures to protect personal data, as well as help expand enrollment and outreach efforts.
S. 2119 is supported by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, the Congressional Fire Services Institute, First Responder Center of Excellence, the International Association of Firefighters, the National Volunteer Fire Council, and the International Association of Fire Chiefs.