,,ii #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #ciaj ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,june #h1 #bjbj,mr4 ,manchin 7for himself and ,mr4 ,udall7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to establish a presumption that certain firefighters who are ,federal employees and have ,,covid-#ai contracted that disease while in the performance of their official duties1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,,covid-#ai as a ,presumptive ,disease in ,wildland ,firefighters ,act4 #b4 ,,covid-#ai and ,federal firefighters 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,fire season ,the term fire season means the period beginning on ,may #ae1 #bjbj1 and ending on ,november #ae1 #bjbj4 7#b7 ,firefighter ,the term firefighter means an employee1 as that term is defined in section #haja of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 who-- 7,a7 possesses a certification that qualifies the individual to work on a wildland fire incident 7commonly known as an ,incident ,qualification ,card72 and 7,b7 7i7 occupies a position that identifies wildland firefighting as a primary job duty2 or 7ii7 has been deployed to a wildland fire incident1 as documented in-- 7,i7 a resource order2 or 7,,ii7 the ,interagency ,resource ,ordering ,capability system administered by the ,secretary of ,agriculture or the ,secretary of the ,interior4 7#c7 ,secretary ,the term ,secretary means the ,secretary of ,labor1 acting through the ,director of the ,office of ,workers' ,compensation ,programs of the ,department of ,labor4 7#d7 ,wildland fire incident ,the term wildland fire incident means a wildfire that-- 7,a7 occurs during the fire season2 and 7,b7 is-- 7i7 tracked in the ,integrated ,reporting of ,wildland-,fire ,information service2 or 7ii7 assigned a unique fire code by a geographic area coordination center4 7b7 ,pre-,work testing 7#a7 ,in general ,consistent with paragraph 7#b71 the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,agriculture shall ensure that each firefighter who is employed by the applicable agency-- 7,a7 is tested for-- 7i7 ,,covid-#ai2 or 7ii7 symptoms of ,,covid-#ai2 or 7,b7 self-quarantines for not less than #ad days and is determined to not have symptoms of ,,covid-#ai through the use of a ,,covid-#ai screening tool developed by the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,agriculture4 7#b7 ,timing of action ,the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,agriculture shall take the applicable action required under paragraph 7#a7-- 7,a7 with respect to a firefighter described in subsection 7a77#b77;,b77i7-- 7i7 before the beginning of the fire season2 or 7ii7 before the firefighter performs any work as a firefighter during the fire season2 and 7,b7 with respect to a firefighter described in subsection 7a77#b77;,b77ii71 before the firefighter performs any work as a firefighter during a wildland fire incident4 7c7 ,compensation for work injuries 7#a7 ,in general ,for the purposes of sections #hajc and #habd of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 a firefighter described in paragraph 7#b7 is deemed to have been injured while in the performance of the duty of the firefighter4 7#b7 ,eligibility 7,a7 ,in general ,a firefighter is described in this paragraph if-- 7i7 7,i7 the firefighter records at a wildland fire incident1 duty station1 or medical facility-- 7aa7 a fever of not less than #ajj4e degrees ,fahrenheit1 as measured with a thermometer2 and 7bb7 a blood-oxygen saturation level of less than #id percent1 as measured with a pulse oximeter2 7,,ii7 a qualified physician issues a written opinion that the firefighter likely has ,,covid-#ai2 or 7,,iii7 the firefighter has a positive ,,covid-#ai test result2 and 7ii7 the qualifying event with respect to the firefighter under clause 7i7 occurs-- 7,i7 with respect to a firefighter described in subsection 7a77#b77;,b77i71 during the period beginning on the date on which the fire season begins and ending on the date that is #bh days after the date on which the fire season ends2 and 7,,ii7 with respect to a firefighter described in subsection 7a77#b77;,b77ii71 during the period beginning on the date on which the firefighter is deployed to the applicable wildland fire incident and ending on the date that is #bh days after the date on which that deployment ends4 7,b7 ,research ,the ,secretary of the ,interior and the ,secretary of ,agriculture1 in consultation with the ,secretary1 may-- 7i7 research ,,covid-#ai detection methods2 and 7ii7 modify the list of symptoms described in subparagraph 7,a77i77,i7 if any findings made while conducting research performed under clause 7i7 of this subparagraph warrant such a modification4 7#c7 ,classification of injury ,with respect to a firefighter to whom the presumption under paragraph 7#a7 applies1 the injury suffered by the firefighter shall be considered to result from ,,covid-#ai4 7#d7 ,period of disability ,the period of disability with respect to a firefighter to whom the presumption under paragraph 7#a7 applies shall be determined in accordance with subchapter ,i of chapter #ha of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 and the rules issued under that subchapter4 7d7 ,claims ,the ,secretary may waive or modify the requirements under any of paragraphs 7#a7 through 7#f7 of section #haba of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 with respect to a firefighter to whom the presumption under subsection 7c77#a7 applies if the ,secretary determines that such waiver or modification is necessary or appropriate in carrying out this section4 7e7 ,authorization of procedures ,the ,secretary shall expedite1 to the maximum extent practicable1 authorization for the furnishing of medical procedures and for bill processing relating to treatment of ,,covid-#ai for a firefighter to whom the presumption under subsection 7c77#a7 applies4