How Aon Partnered with Minnesota Firefighters to Create Crucial Health Benefits

How Aon Partnered with Minnesota Firefighters to Create Crucial Health Benefits
August 29, 2024 8 mins

How Aon Partnered with Minnesota Firefighters to Create Crucial Health Benefits

How Aon Partnered with Minnesota Firefighters to Create Crucial Health Benefits

Firefighters face a unique set of risks and long-term health consequences from their jobs. Aon worked with Minnesota firefighters to create a benefit program to address three primary health issues.

Key Takeaways
  1. Minnesota’s fire departments are largely volunteer-based, resulting in a lack of health benefits for firefighters despite their greater risk for cancer, cardiac risks and emotional trauma.
  2. Aon worked with a Minnesota non-profit established to provide health benefits to all state firefighters — both volunteer and paid.
  3. Three years after successful passage of state legislation, we speak with the non-profit’s co-founder to hear an update on how the health program is working.

Firefighters face a unique set of risks in the work they do. In addition to the obvious risk of serious injury in a fire, they also face long-term health consequences. The most serious of these risks revolve around three main areas: cancer, cardiac health and emotional trauma.

  • Research shows that firefighters are at a 14 percent greater risk of dying from cancer than the rest of the population, largely due to the presence of smoke and other carcinogens in fires.1
  • Cardiac health is a leading cause of line-of-duty deaths,2 in part stemming from the physical exertion of fighting fires.
  • The emotional health of firefighters is volatile, especially as it relates to the stress and trauma associated with the job. Nearly half say they have considered suicide, with nearly one in six making an attempt.3

In a distinguished career of more than three decades, first as a volunteer firefighter and then as a fire chief in Minnesota, George Esbensen saw that the health needs of firefighters weren’t being met — particularly in those three areas. These issues were especially pronounced for volunteer firefighters, who make up about nine in ten of the firefighters in the state. These firefighters had no access to health benefits from their volunteer role, putting them at even greater risk.

In 2016, Esbensen co-founded MnFIRE, an organization whose purpose is to help firefighters address those increased health risks. Realizing that their effort would need partners, MnFIRE looked to the private sector, evaluating consulting firms who have the expertise and market presence to develop a customized solution for the firefighters. MnFIRE partnered with Aon, whose experience would design a program specifically for Minnesota’s 20,000 firefighters. While this effort was in progress, MNFire enacted a four year effort to ensure the state legislature would pass the Hometown Heroes Act, which created the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program.

The Hometown Heroes Assistance Program provides critical illness coverage for firefighters to help offset the costs of these health risks. MnFIRE also runs a support hotline staffed by professionals trained in trauma to offer assistance at any time. Training programs run by MnFIRE focus on raising awareness of the heightened risks firefighters face, along with strategies to mitigate them.

Since its launch in 2021, the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program has provided training for more than 17,500 firefighters across the state. More than 700 have used the assistance hotline, and over 150 have had critical illness claims paid. In the coming months and years, Esbensen hopes to replicate the success of MnFIRE in other states, in addition to strengthening the program in Minnesota.

Watch Esbensen discuss the need for programs like Hometown Heroes Assistance, how it got started and where it’s going:

17K+

17,500 firefighters across Minnesota have received risk mitigation training from the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program since its launch.

1 National Institute for Safety and Health
2 Centers For Disease Control and Prevention
3 International Association of Fire Fighters

General Disclaimer

This document is not intended to address any specific situation or to provide legal, regulatory, financial, or other advice. While care has been taken in the production of this document, Aon does not warrant, represent or guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, completeness or fitness for any purpose of the document or any part of it and can accept no liability for any loss incurred in any way by any person who may rely on it. Any recipient shall be responsible for the use to which it puts this document. This document has been compiled using information available to us up to its date of publication and is subject to any qualifications made in the document.

Terms of Use

The contents herein may not be reproduced, reused, reprinted or redistributed without the expressed written consent of Aon, unless otherwise authorized by Aon. To use information contained herein, please write to our team.

Aon's Better Being Podcast

Our Better Being podcast series, hosted by Aon Chief Wellbeing Officer Rachel Fellowes, explores wellbeing strategies and resilience. This season we cover human sustainability, kindness in the workplace, how to measure wellbeing, managing grief and more.

Aon Insights Series UK

Expert Views on Today's Risk Capital and Human Capital Issues

Construction and Infrastructure

The construction industry is under pressure from interconnected risks and notable macroeconomic developments. Learn how your organization can benefit from construction insurance and risk management.

Cyber Labs

Stay in the loop on today's most pressing cyber security matters.

Cyber Resilience

Our Cyber Resilience collection gives you access to Aon’s latest insights on the evolving landscape of cyber threats and risk mitigation measures. Reach out to our experts to discuss how to make the right decisions to strengthen your organization’s cyber resilience.

Employee Wellbeing

Our Employee Wellbeing collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team. You can also reach out to the team at any time for assistance with your employee wellbeing needs.

Environmental, Social and Governance Insights

Explore Aon's latest environmental social and governance (ESG) insights.

Q4 2023 Global Insurance Market Insights

Our Global Insurance Market Insights highlight insurance market trends across pricing, capacity, underwriting, limits, deductibles and coverages.

Regional Results

How do the top risks on business leaders’ minds differ by region and how can these risks be mitigated? Explore the regional results to learn more.

Human Capital Analytics

Our Human Capital Analytics collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team. Contact us to learn how Aon’s analytics capabilities helps organizations make better workforce decisions.

Insights for HR

Explore our hand-picked insights for human resources professionals.

Workforce

Our Workforce Collection provides access to the latest insights from Aon’s Human Capital team on topics ranging from health and benefits, retirement and talent practices. You can reach out to our team at any time to learn how we can help address emerging workforce challenges.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Our Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders to help dealmakers make better decisions. Explore our latest insights and reach out to the team at any time for assistance with transaction challenges and opportunities.

Navigating Volatility

How do businesses navigate their way through new forms of volatility and make decisions that protect and grow their organizations?

Parametric Insurance

Our Parametric Insurance Collection provides ways your organization can benefit from this simple, straightforward and fast-paying risk transfer solution. Reach out to learn how we can help you make better decisions to manage your catastrophe exposures and near-term volatility.

Pay Transparency and Equity

Our Pay Transparency and Equity collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team on topics ranging from pay equity to diversity, equity and inclusion. Contact us to learn how we can help your organization address these issues.

Property Risk Management

Forecasters are predicting an extremely active 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Take measures to build resilience to mitigate risk for hurricane-prone properties.

Technology

Our Technology Collection provides access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders on navigating the evolving risks and opportunities of technology. Reach out to the team to learn how we can help you use technology to make better decisions for the future.

Top 10 Global Risks

Trade, technology, weather and workforce stability are the central forces in today’s risk landscape.

Trade

Our Trade Collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders on navigating the evolving risks and opportunities for international business. Reach out to our team to understand how to make better decisions around macro trends and why they matter to businesses.

Weather

With a changing climate, organizations in all sectors will need to protect their people and physical assets, reduce their carbon footprint, and invest in new solutions to thrive. Our Weather Collection provides you with critical insights to be prepared.

Workforce Resilience

Our Workforce Resilience collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's Human Capital team. You can reach out to the team at any time for questions about how we can assess gaps and help build a more resilience workforce.

More Like This

View All
View All
Subscribe CTA Banner