This letter is in response to what appears to be a poor attempt of offering an informed journalistic opinion (Feb. 16).

LD 1558 would provide “accidental” death benefits for firefighters, this portion of the editorial is correct, what follows is nothing more than a poorly researched prejudiced article. LD 1558 received unanimous bi-partisan support by the Labor Committee. You are wrong when you state a retired firefighter is eligible for this benefit, once retirement is optioned they are no longer eligible.

Taxpayer money does not fund any type of insurance. Maine Firefighters are part of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System known as a Participating Local District, or PLD, different than any teacher or state plan. Benefits in this plan come from employee and employer contributions to which the firefighter pays the majority, and the employer portion is considerably less costly than Social Security.

Thirty-seven states and two Canadian provinces have similar legislation; the comparable Maine Workers’ Compensation law has been in existence since 1992. Your concern on the onslaughts of similar requests from state workers is hyperbole. Study after study demonstrates the impact of a career of firefighting has on the human body. Research is not your strong suit.

The study you and the Maine Municipal Association cited to trash firefighters was submitted to the Labor Committee by the Professional Firefighters of Maine. It seems like MMA and your paper failed to read the entire report, instead you chose to pick what suits your opinion.

Your statement “A fatal heart attack is not an accidental death” is incorrect. In fact, it has been covered under the Maine Workers’ Compensation law since 1992 (Title 39-A, Section 328).

A study of death experiences prepared by a MPERS actuarial staff was used to predict future costs, it was not a guess as MMA references.

“Firefighters are, as a group, heavy smokers” and smoking plays a significant role in developing cardiovascular disease is insulting and wrong!

You cannot even obtain a job as a Lewiston firefighter if you use tobacco. The Lewiston Firefighters Association is one of a half dozen fire unions in the United States and Canada recognized for their leadership in health in fitness. The department has mandatory physical fitness, health screenings and yearly aerobic capacity testing. The department has four certified fitness trainers and every fire station has modern fitness equipment that has been provided through federal government grants, including comprehensive mandatory medical evaluations. Sixteen other fire departments in the state of Maine have since developed similar programs.

Lastly, any special benefit that requires you to die is not very special. The benefit is to protect our loved ones, not us. The medical evidence is there for the unbiased to see; you chose to ignore. Walk a day in our shoes and then tell us the job is not demanding. We extend to your board that very opportunity.

Your opinion needs to be revisited, anything less is a disservice to your readers and quite simply an appalling insult to the men and women who serve communities throughout Maine.

Rick Cailler, Lewiston Firefighters Association

Editor’s note: The posted language in LD 1558 defines the accidental death benefit as being applicable to all active duty firefighters and any who develop cardiovascular disease within six months of separation from service, which includes retirement. The bill would make the benefit retroactive to Nov. 1, 2004.

See: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_124th/billdocs/SP059501.rtf

There is updated draft language of the bill to exclude benefits post-retirement, unless the firefighter is already receiving a disability retirement benefit and dies as a result of an injury incurred as an active-duty employee. That draft language also includes a rebuttable presumption that if a firefighter dies of cardiovascular disease during or within six months of firefighting, that disease developed on the job.

Title 39-A, Section 328, referenced above does not define cardiovascular disease as accidental death. It links the job to inevitability of heart disease. See: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/statutes/39-A/title39-Asec328.html

The non-smoking policy at the LFD was adopted in recent years, following a trend across the country to reduce the smoking rates in professional fire houses.

In addition to the American Heart Association report, according to The National Center for Health Statistics, firefighters and police officers report greater smoking rates than teachers, health care workers, professional engineers, mathmeticians and many other professions. The smoking rate for firefighters is less than in the forestry, fishing, driving and construction occupations, and less than writers.