Court Rules “Occupational Disease... Provide Medical Care Benefits”
Majority of Duties Performed On-Site, Sufficient Causal Link to Illness
A court has ruled that a firefighter who responded to over 1,000 fire scenes over 29 years developed leukemia not as a personal illness, but as a result of his official duties. The decision recognizes the occupational risks of long-term exposure to hazardous substances and holds the state responsible.
According to Yonhap News on December 14, citing legal sources, Judge Moon Ji-yong of the Seoul Administrative Court’s 8th Administrative Division recently ruled in favor of firefighter A in a lawsuit against the head of the Ministry of Personnel Management, overturning the decision to deny official medical care benefits.
Since the mid-1990s, A worked as a firefighter for about 29 years, participating in firefighting and rescue operations. Although he held supervisory and managerial positions such as department head, duty officer, and fire station chief, he was never completely removed from field response and command duties.
In 2021, A was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and applied for official medical care benefits. However, the Ministry of Personnel Management denied the application, stating that only two years and two months of A’s entire career involved actual firefighting and rescue work. In response, A filed a lawsuit, arguing that he had been repeatedly dispatched to fire scenes without adequate protective equipment and had been exposed to hazardous substances such as benzene and formaldehyde for extended periods.
The court recognized A’s leukemia as an occupational disease and ruled that he should receive medical care benefits. Based on data from the fire department, the court acknowledged that A was involved in at least 1,047 out of 1,431 recorded fire dispatches. The court also found that, even if not all dispatches were documented, it was sufficiently established that A had participated in and commanded hundreds of fire scenes. The court further considered the fact that, due to the nature of the job, field commanders often cannot wear respiratory protective equipment.
Additionally, the court noted that A had no personal or family history of leukemia, and that an occupational and environmental medicine specialist had recognized the link between his long-term firefighting work and the disease. The court also specified that diseases arising in the course of official duties are covered under the Public Officials’ Compensation for Accidents Act.
This ruling became final as the Ministry of Personnel Management did not appeal.
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