B.C. adds three cancers to list of firefighters’ illnesses eligible for coverage
VANCOUVER — The British Columbia government is adding three types of cancer to those that could be considered occupational diseases suffered by firefighters.
A release from the Ministry of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training says breast cancer, prostate cancer and multiple myeloma will be added to the Firefighters Occupational Disease Regulation under the Workers Compensation Act.
Firefighters developing those diseases after a certain period of time on the job would be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits without having to prove the cancer is work-related.
The province says it first recognized certain cancers as occupational diseases for firefighters in 2005.