Firefighter Cancer Registry Act in line for $1 million

The newly enacted Firefighter Cancer Registry Act of 2018 is one step closer to receiving funding

The U.S. Senate voted in an 85-0 vote on Aug. 20 to appropriate $1 million in funding for it. It now moves to the House.

The act, signed into Law by President Donald Trump on July 9, requires the Centers for Disease Control to establish and maintain voluntary registry for the purpose of collecting data in regards to cancer incidents among firefighters. This information when combined with state data will be used to better assess and help prevent cancer among firefighters.

Additionally, it requires that the CDC work to develop strategies to maximize the participation, develop guidance for state agencies, encourage participant inclusion and seek feedback from non-federal experts. The CDC is also required to make all data collected public and accessible for research.

The Firefighter Cancer Registry as passed is authorized up to $2.5 million each year during fiscal years 2018-22.

“The Senate appropriations bill passed on (Aug. 20) allocates $1 million to implementing the law itself. This money can go toward the creation of the registry, the efforts necessary to collect information for the registry, putting out information for firefighters on participation in the registry, pay for the cost of storing data, etc.,” according to the office of Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

Once the House passes this bill it would then go to the president’s desk to be signed.

The passage of the Cancer Registry could also help protect firefighters in the future by establishing new protocols and safeguards to reduce the exposure risk to cancer-causing carcinogens they face on the job.