# Federal Firefighter Cancer Detection and Prevention Act of 2023

Firefighters face significantly higher rates of cancer than the general public due to their exposure to smoke, chemicals, and other hazardous materials on the job. This bill requires the Department of Defense to provide free cancer screening and prevention services to all firefighters who work for the military.

The bill sets up a comprehensive screening program that covers multiple types of cancer. Female firefighters ages 40 and older would receive mammograms to screen for breast cancer—every two years for those in their 40s and annually for those 50 and older. All firefighters age 45 and up would get colon cancer screenings through either colonoscopies or stool-based blood tests. Male firefighters age 50 and older would receive prostate-specific antigen tests annually, with earlier screening available for African American firefighters or those with a family history of prostate cancer. The bill also allows for screening of any other cancers that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identifies as occurring at higher rates in firefighters than the general population. All these tests and services would be provided at no cost to the firefighters during their regular annual health checkups.

The program includes important protections for firefighters' privacy and data. While the Department of Defense will track test results to identify cancer trends among firefighters, any personal information would be removed before analyzing the data. Firefighters can opt out of any screening they don't want. The military can also share anonymized data with the CDC to help researchers better understand why firefighters develop cancer at higher rates, which could eventually lead to better prevention strategies for this workforce.

Federal Firefighter Cancer Detection and Prevention Act of 2023

Slotkin, Elissa

Federal Firefighter Cancer Detection and Prevention Act of 2023 This bill requires the Department of Defense (DOD) to provide its firefighters with medical testing and related services to detect, document, and prevent certain cancers. DOD firefighters may opt out of such testing or services. DOD must document certain information related to the offered testing and services, but must ensure personally identifiable information is removed prior to analyzing the information. DOD may share data with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to increase the knowledge and understanding of cancer occurrences among firefighters.