This Act shall be known and may be cited as Fire Service Paramedic Safety, Health and Dignity Act.
(1) Legislative Intent. The City Council recognizes the critical life safety role filled by uniformed Fire Service Paramedics within the Philadelphia Fire Department, and the need to provide enhanced disability protections for those personnel in order to reflect their critical service and to ensure safety, equality and fairness of treatment among all uniformed Fire Department personnel.
(2) Disability Protections for Uniformed Fire Department Personnel. Because of their legislative authority to act and actual participation in Fire Department emergency operations, including but not limited to fire rescue, fire abatement, and emergency medical services, and in light of their legislative status as firemen for the purposes of the Act of June 24, 1968 (P.L. 237, No. 111), referred to as the Policemen and Firemen Collective Bargaining Act, Fire Service Paramedics in the Philadelphia Fire Department shall be considered as firemen for the purposes of the Act of June 28, 1935 (P.L. 477, No. 193), referred to as the Enforcement Officer Disability Benefits Law (Heart And Lung Act), and as firefighters for the purposes of the Act of 1939 (P.L. 566, No. 284), referred to as the Pennsylvania Occupational Disease Act.