[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 153 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 153

   To provide for the monitoring of the long-term medical health of 
firefighters who responded to emergencies in certain disaster areas and 
                for the treatment of such firefighters.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 4, 2007

  Mrs. Boxer introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide for the monitoring of the long-term medical health of 
firefighters who responded to emergencies in certain disaster areas and 
                for the treatment of such firefighters.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be referred to as the ``Healthy Firefighters Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Firefighters from the San Jacinto Ranger District 
        responded to the Esperanza Incident wildfire in southern 
        California in October of 2006.
            (2) Five firefighters from the San Jacinto Ranger District 
        lost their lives as a consequence of fighting that fire.

SEC. 3. MONITORING AND TREATMENT OF FIREFIGHTERS IN DISASTER AREAS.

    (a) In General.--The United States Fire Administration, after 
consultation with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health, shall--
            (1) contract with an appropriate, locally based medical 
        research university to conduct long-term medical health 
        monitoring of those firefighters who responded to emergencies 
        in any areas referred to in subsection (b); and
            (2) in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services, provide for the treatment of firefighters described 
        in paragraph (1) who suffer health-related conditions as a 
        result of responding to such emergencies.
    (b) Affected Firefighters.--An area referred to in this subsection 
is any area which is declared a disaster area by the Federal 
Government.
    (c) Health Monitoring.--The long-term health monitoring referred to 
in subsection (a) shall include--
            (1) pulmonary illness, neurological damage, and 
        cardiovascular damage; and
            (2) exposure documentation.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to the United States Fire Administration to carry out this 
section, such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2007 
through 2011.
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