Author: Jeremy Craft, President, Western Fire Chiefs Association
I am excited to share a landmark win for firefighters and first responders nationwide. On December 19, 2025, the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act was signed into law as part of the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, finally expanding the federal Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) program to include occupational cancer as a line-of-duty death or disability for firefighters and other public safety officers.
For decades, the PSOB program provided federal death and disability benefits for firefighters killed or permanently disabled in traumatic incidents but did not recognize most job-related cancers, despite cancer being the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths in the fire service. This omission left many families without the federal support they deserved.
What’s Changed?
Under the new law, when a firefighter’s cancer is linked to on-the-job exposure to carcinogens and meets the statute’s eligibility conditions, it is presumed to be a line-of-duty injury for PSOB purposes. This presumption applies if:
- The firefighter’s exposure occurred during official duties,
- The firefighter served at least 5 years before diagnosis,
- The cancer was diagnosed within 15 years of last active service, and
- The cancer directly and proximately resulted in death or permanent and total disability.
- The law is retroactive for the past 5 years
Cancers Covered Under the New PSOB Law
The law defines “exposure-related cancer” to include the following types:
- Bladder cancer
- Brain cancer
- Breast cancer
- Cervical cancer
- Colon / Colorectal cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Kidney cancer
- Leukemia
- Lung cancer
- Malignant melanoma
- Mesothelioma
- Multiple myeloma
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Ovarian cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Skin cancer
- Stomach cancer
- Testicular cancer
- Thyroid cancer
In addition to these, the law also establishes a process to add additional cancers in the future as science evolves.
What This Means for Firefighters and Families
This legislation acknowledges the harsh reality firefighters face — repeated exposure to smoke, chemicals, carcinogens, and hazardous environments — and finally aligns federal benefits with that reality. Surviving families of firefighters who lost their lives to one of these covered cancers now may be eligible for the same PSOB benefits long available for traumatic line-of-duty deaths.
