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Ontario firefighters are set to get easier access to Occupational Safety and Health Board coverage and insurance for certain types of cancer.

Premier Doug Ford says firefighters and investigators make major sacrifices to keep communities, properties and families safe, and the province should always have their backs.

The government says firefighters die from cancer at up to four times the rate of the general population.

Among the changes announced today as part of the upcoming legislation, firefighters with kidney cancer would receive presumptive coverage if they worked as a firefighter for 10 years, down from the current 20-year requirement.

Presumptive coverage means that a worker’s injury or illness is assumed to be work-related, making the claims process faster.

The province is also proposing to remove the requirement that a firefighter be diagnosed with colorectal cancer before age 61.

By Allison Jones

INsauga Editorial Standards and Policies