HF4446

Purpose

• Expand survivor benefits for public safety officers by recognizing deaths from exposure-related cancer as a line-of-duty death, making eligible survivors able to receive benefits.

Key definitions added

• Carcinogen: An agent classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as Group 1 or Group 2A and reasonably linked to an exposure-related cancer.
• Exposure-related cancer: A cancer listed in the bill (including bladder, brain, breast, cervical, colon/colorectal, esophageal, kidney, leukemia, lung, malignant melanoma, mesothelioma, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, ovarian, prostate, skin, stomach, testicular, thyroid cancer, and any cancer added later per updates).

Expanded “killed in the line of duty” coverage

• The bill broadens the definition of “killed in the line of duty” to include:
  • Deaths caused by accidental means while performing duties, and
  • Deaths from heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture that occur while on duty or within certain on-duty periods after duty, where the death is presumed to be the direct and proximate result of a personal injury sustained in the line of duty if:
  • The officer was engaged in on-duty activity involving nonroutine stressful or strenuous physical activity (such as law enforcement, fire suppression, rescue, hazmat response, emergency medical services, prison security, disaster relief, or related training), or
  • The officer died within 24 hours after such on-duty engagement or training.
  • Deaths that are the direct and proximate result of a heart attack, stroke, or vascular rupture as described above, with a presumption that is not overcome by competent medical evidence to the contrary.
• Suicide and PTSD-related deaths: The line-of-duty death includes an officer who dies by suicide (secondary to PTSD as defined in the DSM) or within 45 days of exposure to a traumatic event on duty.

Exposure-related cancer eligibility conditions

• For an officer to be covered under exposure-related cancer there must be:
  • The cancer caused by exposure to a carcinogen while acting within the course and scope of duties,
  • The officer had begun serving as a public safety officer not fewer than five years before the cancer diagnosis,
  • The officer was diagnosed not more than 15 years after their last date of active service as a public safety officer,
  • The cancer directly and proximately results in the death of the officer, with a presumption that the cancer was caused by the exposure unless competent medical evidence shows the exposure was not a substantial contributing factor.

Updates to the list of covered cancers

• The statute requires the state to review and potentially update the definition of exposure-related cancer at least every three years, based on competent medical evidence.
• The commissioner may update the list when credible medical evidence indicates significant risk, using sources such as NIOSH, NTP, NAS, and IARC.
• A process is laid out for petitions to add cancers to the list, including timelines for expert review, consideration by the commissioner, and notice to legislative leadership after actions are taken.

Exposurerelated cancer claims process

• Individuals may file a claim for a public safety officer’s line-of-duty death that is the direct and proximate result of an exposure-related cancer if the death occurred on or after January 1, 2020.
• If a claim is eligible but occurred after January 1, 2020 and before final enactment, the claimant has three years from final enactment to file the claim.

Practical effect

• The bill creates a formal presumption framework for deaths related to exposure-related cancers and certain other on-duty health events, expanding who is covered and under what conditions.
• It establishes a structured review and update mechanism for the list of cancers and a formal petition process to add new cancers to the coverage.
• It sets timing and eligibility windows for filing claims related to exposure-related cancers.

Notable terms in plain language

• On-duty, line of duty, killed in the line of duty
• Carcinogen, exposure-related cancer
• IARC groups 1 and 2A
• Presumption, competent medical evidence
• Nonroutine stressful or strenuous physical activity
• PTSD, suicide, DSM (as related to PTSD)
• NIOSH, National Toxicology Program (NTP), National Academies of Sciences (NAS), IARC
• Final enactment, three-year review cycle, petition to add cancers

Relevant Terms exposure-related cancer; carcinogen; IARC Group 1; IARC Group 2A; International Agency for Research on Cancer; on-duty; killed in the line of duty; presumption; heart attack; stroke; vascular rupture; nonroutine stressful or strenuous physical activity; PTSD; suicide; DSM; NIOSH; National Toxicology Program; NAS; petition; three-year review; final enactment; filing window; public safety officer; cancer list (bladder, brain, breast, cervical, colon/colorectal, esophageal, kidney, leukemia, lung, malignant melanoma, mesothelioma, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, ovarian, prostate, skin, stomach, testicular, thyroid).