By Jonathan Oosting
MLiv.com
LANSING, Mich. — Firefighters put their lives -- and lungs -- on the line in order to protect Michigan residents, and advocates say the state should do more to protect them.
Senate Bill 211, a bipartisan measure introduced by Republican Sen. Tory Rocca of Sterling Heights, would amend Michigan’s worker’s compensation law to guarantee benefits for full-time firefighters who develop certain types of cancer while on the job.
Firefighters rarely have time to test for harmful chemicals before rushing into a burning building and are exposed to cancer-causing carcinogens in almost every instance, according to Mark Docherty, President of the Michigan Professional Firefighters Union, which has advocated for such legislation for more than a decade.
Full story: Workers comp for firefighter cancer? Michigan bill would treat disease as occupational hazard