Counties - No-Cost Preventive Cancer Screenings for Volunteer and Retired Volunteer Firefighters

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
*hb1602*

HOUSE BILL 1602
L1, J1 6lr3659
CF SB 579
By: Delegate Griffith Delegates Griffith, Alston, Bagnall, Cullison, Guzzone, Hill,
Hutchinson, S. Johnson, Kaufman, Kipke, Lopez, Martinez, M. Morgan,
Reilly, Rosenberg, Ross, Taveras, White Holland, and Woorman
Introduced and read first time: February 16, 2026
Assigned to: Rules and Executive Nominations
Re–referred to: Health, March 24, 2026
Committee Report: Favorable with amendments
House action: Adopted
Read second time: March 26, 2026

CHAPTER ______

AN ACT concerning 1

Counties – No–Cost Preventive Cancer Screenings for Volunteer and Retired 2
Volunteer Firefighters 3

FOR the purpose of requiring counties in which a volunteer fire company is located to offer 4
no–cost preventive cancer screenings in accordance with certain guidelines to 5
volunteer firefighters volunteering and retired volunteer firefighters who 6
volunteered with the volunteer fire company; authorizing a county to satisfy the 7
requirement by providing a certain annual examination or applying for a certain 8
grant; requiring the volunteer fire companies to maintain a certain list of volunteer 9
firefighters and retired volunteer firefighters and provide the list, annually and on 10
request, to the county in which the volunteer fire company is located; requiring the 11
counties to maintain the list provided; and generally relating to the provision of 12
no–cost preventive cancer screenings for volunteer and retired volunteer firefighters 13
by counties. 14

BY adding to 15
Article – Local Government 16
Section 9–115 17
Annotated Code of Maryland 18
(2013 Volume and 2025 Supplement) 19

2 HOUSE BILL 1602

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MA RYLAND, 1
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 2

Article – Local Government 3

9–115. 4

(A) (1) IN THIS SECTION THE F OLLOWING WORDS HAVE THE MEANINGS 5
INDICATED. 6

(2) “RETIRED VOLUNTEER FIR EFIGHTER” MEANS AN INDIVIDUAL 7
WHO IS A RETIRED FIREFIGHTER WHO: 8

(I) VOLUNTEERED WITH A V OLUNTEER FIRE COMPAN Y IN A 9
COUNTY; 10

(II) WAS ACTIVELY INVOLVE D IN FIRE SUPPRESSIO N WHILE 11
VOLUNTEERING WITH THE VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY; 12

(III) HAS COMPLETED A MINI MUM OF 3 YEARS OF VOLUNTEER 13
SERVICE; AND 14

(IV) ACCUMULATED AT LEAST 50 POINTS UNDER A LENGT H OF 15
SERVICE AWARD PROGRAM OR A POINT SYSTEM ESTABLISHED IN LIEU OF A LENGTH 16
OF SERVICE AWARD PROGRAM. 17

(2) (3) “VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPAN Y” INCLUDES A VOLUNTEER 18
FIRE DEPARTMENT. 19

(3) (4) “VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER” MEANS AN INDIVIDUAL WHO IS 20
A FIREFIGHTER ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN FIRE SUPPRESSION AND VOLUNTEERING 21
WITH A VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY IN A COUNTY. 22

(B) (1) EACH COUNTY IN WHICH A VOLUNTEER FIRE COM PANY IS 23
LOCATED SHALL OFFER NO–COST PREVEN TIVE CANCER SCREENIN GS IN 24
ACCORDANCE WITH THE LATEST SCREENING GUI DELINES ISSUED BY TH E 25
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE FIGHTERS TO EACH VOLU NTEER 26
FIREFIGHTER WHO VOLU NTEERS AND EACH RETIRED VOL UNTEER FIREFIGHTER 27
WHO VOLUNTEERED WITH THE VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY. 28

(2) EACH VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY SHALL: 29

HOUSE BILL 1602 3

(I) MAINTAIN AN UP –TO–DATE LIST OF VOLUNTE ER 1
FIREFIGHTERS WHO ARE VOLUNTEERING AND RETIRED VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS 2
WHO VOLUNTEERED WITH THE VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY; AND 3

(II) PROVIDE THE LIST TO THE CO UNTY IN WHICH THE 4
VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY IS LOCATED: 5

1. ON OR BEFORE OCTOBER 1 EACH YEAR; AND 6

2. ON REQUEST OF THE COUNTY. 7

(3) EACH COUNTY IN WHICH A VOLUNTEER FIRE COM PANY IS 8
LOCATED SHALL MAINTA IN A LIST OF ALL VOL UNTEER FIREFIGHTERS WHO 9
VOLUNTEER AND ALL RETIRED VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTERS WHO VOLUNTEERED IN 10
THE COUNTY AS PROVID ED BY EACH VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY LOCATED IN THE 11
COUNTY UNDER PARAGRAPH (2) OF THIS SUBSECTION. 12

(C) A COUNTY MAY SATISFY T HE REQUIREMENT IN SU BSECTION (B)(1) OF 13
THIS SECTION BY: 14

(1) PROVIDING A NO –COST ANNUAL EXAMINAT ION TO VOLUNTEER 15
FIREFIGHTERS AND RETIRED VOLUNTEE R FIREFIGHTERS THAT INCLUDES 16
PREVENTIVE CANCER SCREENINGS FOR FIREFIGHTERS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE 17
LATEST SCREENING GUIDELINES ISSUED BY THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF 18
FIRE FIGHTERS; OR 19

(2) APPLYING FOR A GRANT UNDER TITLE 13, SUBTITLE 40 OF THE 20
HEALTH – GENERAL ARTICLE TO PAY FOR IN NOVATIVE CANCER SCREENING 21
TECHNOLOGIES, INCLUDING A MULTICANCER EARLY DETECTION BLOOD TEST. 22

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 23
1, 2026. 24

Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.