01.09.17 - Expanded cancer coverage top 2017 legislative priority of firemen’s group
"An organization that represents the interests of volunteer firefighters in Albany got together with more than 30 volunteer firefighters from across the region on Sunday to outline its priorities for the state legislative session that began Wednesday."
"The key concern of the Northern New York chapter of the Firemen’s Association of the State of New York will be to extend medical benefits that now apply only to professional firefighters to the volunteers who make up the bulk of the state firefighting forces, representatives said at the meeting held at the Malone Callfiremen Station."
Andrew Marocco, a lobbyist for FASNY’s DKC Government Affairs team, said that the bill would “provide a rebuttable presumption that several types of cancer are covered under the VFBL and VAWBL.”
“Volunteer firefighters are fighting the same fires that the career guys are,” said Marocco, noting that approximately 80 percent of fire departments across the state are volunteer departments.