At a Firefighter Cancer Screening, He Said He Is 'Fighting in Washington' for Screenings. He Cosponsors Neither Firefighter Cancer Screening Bill.

Why this matters

Most of NY-23 is protected by volunteer fire companies, and cancer is the leading cause of line-of-duty death in the fire service. On September 21, Rep. Langworthy visited the Clarence Center Fire Department during an esophageal cancer screening for firefighters and posted that he is “fighting in Washington to expand access to cancer screenings and treatments.” His office’s advisory for the event named no bill. This entry checks the claim against the bills the fire service itself is asking Congress to pass.

Statement

Source: Official Facebook page, September 21, 2026, over a WGRZ clip about the screening:

“Our firefighters put their lives and health on the line to protect us. Data now shows that because of what they are exposed to on the job, they have a 62% greater risk of developing esophageal cancer. Early detection is the key to saving lives and that’s why I’m fighting in Washington to expand access to cancer screenings and treatments.”

Fingerlakes1, reporting on his office’s media advisory on September 20: he “will also discuss efforts in Washington to expand access to cancer screening and treatment for firefighters, though the media advisory did not identify a specific bill.” The advisory also did not say which medical organization would conduct the tests.

The record

The International Association of Fire Fighters publishes a legislative priority book each year. Its 2026 edition has a section headed “Expanding Access to Cancer Screenings.” The bill under that heading is the FIRE Cancer Act, H.R. 1610, which “would establish a new funding source within the Assistance to Firefighters Grant program to help departments provide cancer screenings.” The Congressional Research Service summary says it covers “cancer prevention programs (e.g., multi-cancer early detection testing) for firefighting personnel.”

Each bill below was checked against its official cosponsor roster.

Firefighter cancer screening and detection bills

Other fire service bills

Votes

In plain language: he has supported the fire service bills that most of Congress supports, and he voted for the two that became law. The one thing his post says he is fighting for, cancer screening for firefighters, is the subject of two bills. He has signed neither. A neighboring New York Republican has signed the one the fire fighters’ union is asking for.

The statistic

The WGRZ clip he posted cites a different number: the firefighters' association and the federal occupational health institute “report that firefighters have a 9% higher risk of being diagnosed with cancer.” The Firefighter Cancer Support Network attributes that figure, and a 14 percent higher risk of dying from cancer, to the institute’s study of 30,000 firefighters. The 62 percent esophageal figure appears in his office’s advisory; Fingerlakes1 describes it as “a figure also used in firefighter screening program” materials. This entry did not locate the underlying study and does not dispute the figure.

One related item on the record: the federal National Firefighter Registry for Cancer went offline in the spring of 2025 after layoffs at the occupational health institute, and the trade publication FireRescue1 reported it back online on May 15, 2025. No statement from him about the registry was located on his website.

The fair reading

• The general claim has support. He cosponsors the Medicare multi-cancer screening bill, the fallen-heroes act, the PFAS gear bill and the 9/11 health funding fix, and he voted for the defense bill that made firefighter cancer a line-of-duty death. “Fighting to expand access to cancer screenings” is a fair description of the Medicare bill.
• Most members are on neither screening bill. H.R. 1610 has 7 cosponsors and H.R. 2921 has 11. Not signing a small bill is ordinary. The gap is specific to the claim he chose to make at this event.
• Showing up counts. Attending a screening at a volunteer company draws attention to a real risk. This entry does not question the visit.
• His office may have had another bill in mind. The advisory named none. If his office identifies one, this entry will be updated.

Questions this raises

1. Which bill did his office mean by “efforts in Washington to expand access to cancer screening and treatment for firefighters”?
2. Will he cosponsor the FIRE Cancer Act, which would let fire departments like Clarence Center’s use federal grant money for the kind of screening he attended?
3. Who conducted the screening, and did the company or its trade group ask his office to attend?

Related fact-checks

• The Oversight seat he cites vs. the committee’s attendance and vote record
• State of the District: health access, September 2026

Sources

• Rep. Langworthy, official Facebook page, reel of September 21, 2026: https://www.facebook.com/reel/2427312277758733/ (caption and transcript retained)
• Fingerlakes1, “Langworthy to attend firefighter cancer screening in Clarence Center,” September 20, 2026: https://www.fingerlakes1.com/2026/09/20/langworthy-to-attend-firefighter-cancer-screening-in-clarence-center/
• International Association of Fire Fighters, 2026 Legislative Issues Book: https://www.iaff.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/2026-Legislative-Issues-Book.pdf
• govinfo BILLSTATUS (official cosponsor rosters), 119th Congress: H.R. 1610, 2921, 3184, 1410, 1269, 842, 1902, 759, 1505, 1443, 4852, 8789, e.g. https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/119/hr/BILLSTATUS-119hr1610.xml
• House Clerk, Roll Call 320, December 10, 2025 (S. 1071): https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025320 ; 2024 Roll Call 194 (S. 870): https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2024194
• National Volunteer Fire Council, “NVFC Priority Legislation Expanding PSOB to Certain Cancers Becomes Law,” December 23, 2025: https://www.nvfc.org/nvfc-priority-legislation-expanding-psob-to-certain-cancers-becomes-law/
• Firefighter Cancer Support Network, FAQ (9 percent and 14 percent figures): https://www.firefightercancersupport.org/resources/faq/
• FireRescue1, National Firefighter Registry for Cancer offline and back online (May 15, 2025): https://www.firerescue1.com/niosh/national-firefighter-registry-for-cancer-back-online-following-changes-to-niosh-programs

Note: This entry documents publicly available legislative records. It does not question the value of the screening event or his attendance, and it does not allege that any statement was knowingly false. Rep. Langworthy’s office has not been asked for comment as of this writing; any response will be published in full.

Last updated: September 21, 2026