Federal Firefighters Fairness Act of 2022

Floor Speech

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Ms. HOULAHAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my amendment to the Federal Firefighters Fairness Act, which will ensure that our female firefighters can have the healthcare resources that they, too, deserve.

Women have been firefighting in the United States for 200 years--yes, for two centuries. Yet, despite their enormous contributions, female firefighters and first responders have been underrepresented and overlooked when it comes to scientific research and data.

Every day, female firefighters, paramedics, and medical technicians put their lives on the line to keep us and our communities safe. In fact, just last night, firefighters saved the life of a man in West Whiteland, a township that is in my community.

They take care of us, and we need to take care of them, too. As an engineer, I say that it is past time that we use data-driven approaches to keep them safe.

My amendment to include a study on gynecological cancers is very straightforward and common sense. This is how it works: With additional scientific research, we can more thoroughly understand the impact of fire exposure on female firefighters' health, and we can work toward proactive solutions that would minimize those harmful effects.

All frontline workers deserve to be informed about the risks of their work equally. Today, we have an opportunity to fill that knowledge gap that could change the lives of generations of female firefighters and frontline workers to come.

An inclusive workforce is key to fostering innovation and problem- solving and to retaining the very best first responders our community has to offer, and that, of course, includes women.

A better workforce means saving more lives, and it is that simple. Please, let's not leave female firefighters behind.

I urge my colleagues to support my amendment so that we may better equip our researchers, our doctors, our government, our female frontline workers themselves with long-overdue scientific data.

I thank Chairman Scott and the leadership for bringing this bill to the floor.

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