Firefighter health focus at Hopkins

June 24, 2008

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has received a $1 million grant from the U.S. government to help research the high number of heart attacks suffered by firefighters, according to Sens. Barbara A. Mikulski and Benjamin L. Cardin.

Johns Hopkins is working with the National Volunteer Fire Council and will study firefighter fitness programs and ways to reduce preventable heart conditions. Heart attacks are a leading cause of death for firefighters, according to the senators.

"Firefighters risk their lives to protect our citizens, and we must provide researchers with the tools they need to ensure our first responders' health and safety," Cardin said in a statement.

The funds were awarded as part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program. Mikulski is a member of the Homeland Security appropriations subcommittee, and Cardin is a member of the Senate Budget committee.