Bill > HB1785

This bill amends the Workers' Compensation Act to modify provisions related to cancer compensation for firefighters. The bill expands and clarifies the conditions under which firefighters can receive compensation for cancer-related claims. Specifically, it maintains the requirement that firefighters must have served at least four continuous years in firefighting duties and must have passed a pre-employment physical examination that did not reveal cancer. The bill changes the standard for denying claims from "substantial competent evidence" to "clear and convincing medical evidence" that the cancer was not caused by firefighting. It also introduces a new provision allowing claims to be denied if tobacco use is proven to be the major contributing cause of the cancer. The bill extends the time frame for filing cancer-related claims from 300 to 600 weeks after last employment, though the presumption of occupational causation only applies to claims made within the first 300 weeks. For volunteer firefighters, claims must be supported by documentation from the Pennsylvania Fire Information Reporting System demonstrating direct exposure to specific carcinogens. The changes aim to provide more comprehensive workers' compensation protection for firefighters diagnosed with cancer while also establishing clearer standards for claim evaluation.

Labor and Employment

https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/billinfo/bill_history.cfm?syear=2025&sind=0&body=H&type=B&bn=1785