Connecticut
Governor signs bill that expands cancer coverage for firefighters
The governor has signed a bill that updates the Connecticut Firefighters Cancer Relief Program.
The updates include streamlining claims so that firefighters get benefits quicker, extending benefits to state firefighters working at UConn and Bradley Airport, and adding skin cancer to the list of covered conditions.
According to research conducted by the CDC, firefighters are 1.39 times more likely to develop skin cancer.
“Skin cancer was the last major system that was not covered under the original bill,” Peter Brown, president of the Uniformed Professional Firefighters of Connecticut, said. “So everything else, across the board is, is fully covered.”
Marisabel Barbagallo has been a firefighter in Hartford for seven years. She was diagnosed with breast cancer last January.
“I felt really just caught off guard because I just felt like I was still young,” she said.
Barbagallo was out of work for 10 months. She had three surgeries and chemotherapy. The relief program offering wage replacement benefits was established in 2023, so Barbagallo said finding treatment was not hard, but accessing the benefits was a challenge.
Now advocates are pushing the legislature to pass a bill that provides a funding stream for the Firefighter Cancer Relief Fund.
The fund has about $8 million in it now, but Brown expects more claims to come in so they want to be prepared.
“That’s always the biggest fear we have,” Brown said. “We have over 30 claims. We don’t want to see that fund go insolvent.”
Firefighters are also working to get cancer screenings covered. Just this month, the state began providing cancer screenings to firefighters enrolled in the state employee health plan.
Marina Mabrey torched her former team for 37 points as the Toronto Tempo came back from 14 down to beat the Connecticut Sun, 101-97, at Mohegan Sun Arena.
Former UConn women’s basketball star Olivia Nelson-Ododa had 13 points and three rebounds while Aaliyah Edwards had six points and two rebounds for the Sun. Kia Nurse did not score in just five minutes for the Tempo.
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WETHERSFIELD, Conn. (WFSB) – A tractor trailer’s diesel fuel saddle tank ruptured on I-91 north between exits 25 and 27, state police said.
Approximately 25 to 30 gallons of fuel was released to the road surface, according to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. No ground soil or waterways were involved, DEEP said.
The two right lanes were closed, according to the state Department of Transportation.
No other vehicles were involved and no injuries were reported, state police said.
Wethersfield Fire Department solidified the diesel fuel on the ground surface with Speedy Dry, DEEP said. An environmental cleanup contractor was en route for cleanup.
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WESTPORT — A two-vehicle crash on Interstate 95 caused a traffic slowdown stretching for miles into Fairfield Friday afternoon, according to state officials.
The crash scene has since been cleared.
Connecticut State Police said the two-car crash was reported near Exit 17 in the southbound lanes at 3:03 p.m.
One driver was taken to the hospital for reported injuries, the agency said.
The crash closed the right lane of the highway, causing cars and trucks to be backed up for miles along I-95 into Fairfield, traffic cameras showed.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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