By Alan Gathright
Rocky Mountain News
Copyright 2007 Denver Publishing Company
DENVER — Firefighters say they can’t get workers compensation for cancer, even though studies show they are exposed to carcinogenic fumes during routine fires.
With cancer rates far higher than among police officers and the general population, they’re urging a shift in state law that would relieve them of the burden of proving specific fires caused certain cancers. House Bill 1008, sponsored by Mike Cerbo, D-Denver, would shift the responsibility to require employers or insurance companies to prove the disease was not work-related.
“Every firefighter is exposed to high levels of carcinogens at almost every fire,” Littleton Battalion Chief Ray Rahne told the House Business Affairs and Labor Committee on Thursday.
He listed three active or retired colleagues who died of various cancers linked to specific contaminants triggered during fires. But Rahne and union officials said most firefighters stopped filing workers comp cancer claims years ago because claims were rejected when workers could not pinpoint the exact fire and chemical exposure evidence.
Firefighters unwittingly exposed themselves to dangerous chemicals over decades before anyone recognized the cancer risk, Rahne said.
The bill has drawn opposition from the Colorado Municipal League and insurance providers, who warn that providing firefighters with a legal “presumption” that certain high-risk cancers are work-related will drive up workers comp costs for employers.
Committee Chairwoman Rep. Rosemary Marshall, D-Denver, delayed action to give lawmakers time to study the issue.