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HYDE-SMITH HIGHLIGHTS EXPANDED FIRST RESPONDER BENEFITS AHEAD OF LAW ENFORCEMENT APPRECIATION DAY
Miss. Senator Cosponsored Bill Signed into Law to Expand Federal Benefits for Firefighters, Other First Responders
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In advance of National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day on Friday, U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today called attention to legislation she cosponsored to expand access to federal support for the families of firefighters and other first responders who pass away or become permanently disabled from service-related cancers.
Hyde-Smith cosponsored the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act (S.237) to amend the federal Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) program to recognize occupational cancer as a line-of-duty death or disability, a vital update to reflect the heightened cancer risk firefighters and other first responders face due to chronic carcinogen exposure.
“The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act recognizes that the lives and health of our first responders, whether law enforcement, firefighters, or EMTs, are deeply affected by exposure to dangerous contaminants and chronic carcinogens. Today, these first responders and their families will have better access to federal benefits,” Hyde-Smith said. “I consider enactment of this law as a showing of our appreciation for those who put their lives on the line every day to protect our communities.”
Under the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, which became law in December as part of a larger legislative package, the families of firefighters and other first responders who lose their lives or become permanently disabled as a result of service-related cancers are eligible for support from the PSOB program.
Prior to the enactment of this legislation, affected first responders were only eligible for PSOB support for physical injuries sustained in the line of duty, or for deaths from duty-related heart attacks, strokes, mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, and 9/11-related illnesses. The new law should help ensure PSOB benefits keep pace with the needs of first responders and their families.
Among the first responder organizations that endorsed the legislation are the International Association of Fire Fighters, Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, Fraternal Order of Police, Association of State Criminal Investigative Agencies; Major County Sheriffs of America, Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association, National Association of Police Organizations, Congressional Fire Services Institute, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, National Fire Protection Association, National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition, and the National Volunteer Fire Council.
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) were the lead sponsors of S.237, which had broad bipartisan support in the Senate.
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