In this subtitle, “Program” means the Professional and Volunteer Firefighter Innovative Cancer Screening Technologies Program.

There is a Professional and Volunteer Firefighter Innovative Cancer Screening Technologies Program in the Department. The Department shall administer the Program. The Department may adopt regulations to implement this subtitle.

The purpose of the Program is to provide grants to local fire departments and volunteer fire companies and departments to procure innovative cancer screening tests that are not otherwise conducted during routine physical examinations or covered by insurance to professional firefighters employed by a local fire department and volunteer firefighters who serve in a volunteer fire company or department. The goal of the Program is to reduce cancer mortality among professional and volunteer firefighters while advancing the adoption of novel technologies that may also benefit the health of Marylanders and the economy of the State.

A local fire department or a volunteer fire company or department may apply to the Department for a grant under the Program. The county in which a volunteer fire company or department is located shall assist volunteer fire companies or departments in filing applications under paragraph (1) of this subsection. Each year, the Department shall issue a request for applications from local fire departments and volunteer fire companies or departments for grants offered under the Program. An application submitted in accordance with subsection (b) of this section shall include, at minimum: The names and qualifications of competent health care providers that are advising the applicant on the selection and administration of cancer screening tests; The number of firefighters proposed to be screened and the criteria for selecting those firefighters that the applicant has determined to be at the highest cancer risk based on the latest scientific and medical research reports; and A description of each test proposed to be procured by the applicant, including: The claimed accuracy and reliability of the test; The scientific and clinical evidence supporting the claimed accuracy and reliability; Whether the test employs innovative or novel technologies, such as DNA sequencing, genomics, proteomics, metabolomics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, or other state–of–the–art technology; Whether the test has the ability to simultaneously screen for two or more cancer types for which firefighters have a higher incidence or death rate; The cost of the test; and Whether the test is developed, manufactured, or commercialized by a business entity located in the State.

The Department shall develop a weighting formula by which to rate each application received under § 13–4004 of this subtitle. Subject to subsection (c) of this section, the Department shall prioritize awarding grants to applicants based on the quality of the application and the degree to which the tests proposed to be procured by the applicant meet the following criteria: The scientific and clinical evidence supporting the claimed accuracy and reliability of the test; Whether the test employs innovative or novel technologies; The ability of the test to simultaneously screen for two or more cancer types; The cost–effectiveness of the test; and Whether the test is developed, manufactured, or commercialized by a business entity located in the State. If the Department receives applications for grants totaling more than the amount of funds appropriated for the Program for a fiscal year, the Department shall award the grants on a pro rata basis.

For fiscal years 2021 through 2024, the Governor shall include at least $100,000 in the annual budget for the Program. For fiscal year 2025 and each fiscal year thereafter, the Governor may include at least $1,000,000 in the annual budget for the Program. Appropriations and expenditures made for the purpose of implementing the Program, including the use of any funds received by a person under any component of the Program, are subject to audit by the Office of Legislative Audits as provided in § 2–1220 of the State Government Article. The Secretary may use up to 20% of Program funds to support research centers, including the University of Maryland Institute for Health Computing, in the collection, analysis, and processing of Program outcome data for the purposes of assessing, maximizing, and improving the effectiveness and clinical utility of the cancer screening funded by the Program.

On or before December 1, 2020, and each December 1 thereafter, the Department shall report, in accordance with § 2–1257 of the State Government Article, to the Senate Finance Committee and the House Health and Government Operations Committee on: The number of individuals who have been screened through the Program; The types of tests used to screen those individuals; The costs of the tests; and The types of cancers detected by the tests.