Alberta firefighters now have Workers Compensation Board coverage for two new types of cancer under changes announced yesterday.
The two new types of cancers, esophageal and testicular, add to eight other cancers where firefighters receive presumptive coverage from the board for illness they are assumed to have developed on the job.
The change means that firefighters who develop either type of cancer will not have to prove that their illness is job related, it will be assumed.
Sharon Harris, who lost her husband Capt. Al Harris to esophageal cancer, was on hand at the government’s announcement on Friday.
Though the change comes too late for her husband, she said it is good to know other families will not have to go through the same challenges.
Harris said she always felt her husband would be looked after for the years he risked his life and was devastated when he was denied benefits.
“It was a disappointment, a disbelief that he held up his end of the bargain and they didn’t hold up their end.”
The changes come as a result of a private member’s bill, passed during the spring session of the legislature.
Bill sponsor Leduc-Beaumont-Devon MLA George Rogers said there wouldn’t be a significant cost to the board, because only about 10 firefighters die from this type of cancer nationwide, each year.
“It is minimal. There is a cost, but it is not a great cost to the system and … these gentlemen are putting their lives on the line every day.”
Currently, the board’s regulations only apply to full-time firefighters, but something for volunteers is likely not far off, he said.
“I suspect that at some point in the future, whether it is a government bill or a private member’s bill, we will be doing another bill for volunteer firefighters.”
Thomas Lukaszuk, Minister of Employment and Immigration, said it only makes sense to extend this protection to firefighters.
“If we get into trouble we expect firefighters to be there for us. We expect them to do this without thinking of their own safety,” he said. “We can’t expect them to rush into a burning building to take care of us and we must then take care of them.”
Scott Wilde, president of St. Albert’s firefighters’ union, said the change is a great step forward.
“The whole presumptive legislation is obviously good for firefighters, but it is so good for their families as well and that has always been our biggest push.”
Harris said her husband loved his job and knew the risks and only wanted to protect his family.
“He loved being a firefighter and he wouldn’t have changed that,” she said. “It never bothered him. He knew this was part of the job. It did bother him when he couldn’t protect us anymore.”
For the last year, St. Albert has funded a program to cover medical check-ups for local firefighters, aimed to find some of the early indicators of cancer. The check-ups are specifically designed for firefighters with knowledge of the risks they face.
Wilde said the program is expensive, but brings some comfort to firefighters.
“It is a big-ticket item, but for us to have the opportunity to have a complete medical assessment from someone who knows what firefighters go through is a huge benefit.”
