Applicability; Compensation for Qualified Firefighters; Burden of Proof

(a) This article shall apply to firefighters who, upon entering the service of the state as firefighters, have successfully passed a physical examination that failed to reveal any evidence of a firefighter’s occupational disease and who have completed at least three years’ service as firefighters. If a physical examination was not required at the time of entry into service, a firefighter who completes an exam by January 1, 2013, shall be deemed eligible for benefits under this section. (b) If a firefighter who is eligible for benefits under Chapter 29A, or any other law, suffers disability as a result of a firefighter’s occupational disease, his or her disability shall be compensated under any law that provides benefits for firefighters of the state who are injured in the line of duty. If a firefighter who qualifies for benefits under this section dies as the result of a firefighter’s occupational disease, his or her death shall be compensated as if the firefighter had been killed in the line of duty pursuant to Article 1. However, benefits for a firefighter who is eligible for workers’ compensation pursuant to Chapter 5 of Title 25 or a firefighter who is eligible for any benefits under the State Employee Injury Compensation Trust Fund pursuant to Chapter 29A of Title 36 shall be governed solely by those provisions. (c) In the case of a firefighter’s occupational disease as defined in this article, the state must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the condition was caused by some means other than the occupation to disqualify the firefighter from benefits. (Act 2012-559, p. 1643, §2; Act 2026-353, §1.)