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Lawmakers, firefighters mark passage of HP 65 to expand cancer protections and screening
Summary
At a Capitol event, state leaders and firefighters celebrated passage of HP 65, which speakers said adds cancers linked to firefighting and establishes a screening and treatment program; legislators described a long collaborative effort and shared personal accounts of wildfire and illness.
At a Capitol event, Utah officials and firefighters gathered to mark what speakers described as the passage of HP 65, legislation they said expands protections for firefighters by adding cancers scientifically linked to firefighting and establishing a screening and treatment program for early detection.
"It's scientific fact that the profession of firefighting causes cancer," Representative Casey Snider said while urging support for the bill and thanking the men and women in uniform. He framed the measure as a way to honor colleagues who have died or fallen ill from cancer related to firefighting exposures.
Speakers at the event, including the governor and members of both legislative chambers, described the measure as the result of decades of work. One legislator recounted a June 2018 wildfire that engulfed his property and prompted a multi‑department response from Spanish Fork, Utah County, Mableton, Salem and Woodland Hills; he said the personal experience reinforced the bill's urgency.
A survivor who identified himself during remarks credited early screening with saving his life, saying that earlier detection of prostate and renal cancer gave him a better prognosis and urged continued investment in screening. Organizers and legislators repeatedly linked the bill to research and collaborations with the Labor Commission and the Rocky Mountain Occupational Health Center, and named Dr. Hageman and a Fire and Rescue Academy workgroup as contributors to the underlying research.
An event speaker summarized the bill's provisions this way: "HP 65 expands protections by adding scientifically linked cancers, creates a screening and treatment program for early detection, [and] strengthens our commitment to those who serve." The speaker also said Utah aims to lead nationally on these protections and encouraged other states to adopt similar measures.
Event organizers and officials said the bill had broad bipartisan support and thanked firefighters for their service. The transcript records speakers thanking Representative Snider and Senator Mike McElve for championing the legislation, and multiple legislators described the effort as a long, cooperative process spanning roughly two decades.
The recorded remarks and program notes indicate the measure has been passed as part of this legislative session, though the transcript does not include a roll‑call vote or a tally. Organizers closed the ceremony by offering media access to legislators and fire representatives for additional questions and noting that the legislative session still had a few bills to consider over the next three days.
