A Fallen Hero - Video Inside [Archive] - Page 3

Gold9472

05-16-2008, 02:46 PM

Feds block 9/11 health care money

http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_263/fedsblock.html

By Julie Shapiro
5/16/2008

The federal government is backing out of a requirement to treat Downtown residents, office workers and students for 9/11-related illnesses, saying it needs more time to study the problem.

Before providing any funding to people other than first responders, the Department of Health and Human Services wants more data on those people’s exposure levels to World Trade Center toxins and their subsequent health problems.

Any money the department spends on residents, office workers and students this year will go toward gathering and analyzing data — and only after that will the agency decide how much money, if any, to allocate for screening and treating non-responders. This directly contradicts a law passed by Congress last year that was supposed to pay for treatment for non-responders for the first time.

Downtown elected officials and health advocates responded angrily to the Department of Health’s decision.

“More than six years after 9/11, it’s time for the Bush Administration to stop dragging its feet [and] provide the help that Congress intended,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler said in a statement to Downtown Express.

Late last year, President George W. Bush signed a law that included a provision that for the first time would have used federal money to pay for health treatment for groups other than first responders. He agreed to Congress’s 2008 allocation of $108 million for both responders and non-responders. Health advocates hailed the law, saying it would provide much-needed funds to programs already treating thousands of people.

But in February, the Bush administration announced that it would only commit $25 million to 9/11 health in fiscal year 2009, which begins this October, and the feds also cut out language referring to residents, office workers and students. Congress demanded an explanation of the federal government’s future plans for 9/11 health, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services replied with a report that questions the need for non-responders to receive services.

“It’s a very complex issue,” said Holly Babin, a spokesperson for H.H.S. “We have to ensure the proper management of federal resources.”

Since this is the first time Health and Human Services has been asked to fund programs for non-responders, the department has to gather data on “exposure levels in relation to geographical scope and the resulting health effects,” according to the report. H.H.S. is meeting with the W.T.C. Environmental Health Center, which currently provides treatment to non-responders at Bellevue Hospital and other locations in New York City. H.H.S. will gather information from the Environmental Health Center and then decide how much funding to provide, if any. For the first year, though, the federal money will likely go toward determining the need, not treating patients.

“Congress was clear in its call for H.H.S. to develop a comprehensive, long-term plan to treat and monitor area residents, workers, students and others who were exposed to Ground Zero toxins,” Nadler said. “Clearly, H.H.S. has failed to deliver. The administration must end its delays and get this money — already appropriated — to help the living victims of 9/11.”

New York City is already funding three centers of excellence: the W.T.C. Environmental Health Center based at Bellevue, which provides screening and treatment to non-responders, and the Mount Sinai Consortium and F.D.N.Y. program, which serve volunteers and first responders. The city expected that the money Congress allocated for non-responders would either go to the Environmental Health Center or go toward creating a new program.

City health officials declined to comment on the impact of losing the federal funding for non-responders. In a tight budget year, many city programs and departments are facing cuts.

Nadler, Rep. Carolyn Maloney and nine other New York members of Congress, including Republican Vito Fossella, wrote a letter to Michael Leavitt, secretary of H.H.S., on May 9, saying the department’s report is a “stall tactic” that ignores Congress’s directives and also ignores the needs of those who are sick because of the W.T.C. attacks.

Prior to taking over H.H.S., Leavitt replaced Christie Whitman at the Environmental Protection Agency, whose response to 9/11 has been widely criticized by scientists as well as Downtown politicians and advocates.

Kimberly Flynn, head of 9/11 Environmental Action, met the federal government’s explanation for delaying funding for residents with deep skepticism.

“Studying the problem is the Bush administration’s cover for refusing to commit the resources that Downtown residents, students and office workers are entitled to,” Flynn said. “They’ve heard the evidence. They’ve heard the numbers. They know there’s a problem. They don’t want to take responsibility for the problem.”

Flynn cited testimony from Lorna Thorpe, deputy commissioner of the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, to describe the extent of the evidence that non-responders are getting sick. Parents of children enrolled in the W.T.C. Health Registry reported twice the levels of asthma among children under 5, compared to the average in the northeastern United States, Thorpe said at a Congressional hearing March 12.

“That’s a pretty sizable health impact and H.H.S. knows it,” Flynn said. “But the Bush administration sticks with its talking points: The air was safe, the long-delayed lousy cleanup was carried out just to allay the unwarranted anxieties of residents — all that exposure to all that dust and smoke had no impact.”

The federal government’s assertions were so upsetting to Celia Correa, an office worker who links her lung disease to post-9/11 exposure, that she said she did not even know where to begin.

“I can’t believe the federal government is still trying to avoid taking care of people that need medical attention because of being exposed to the 9/11 fallout,” Correa said. “They really don’t give a damn.”

Correa had to quit her job when her respiratory symptoms worsened, leaving her without health insurance. She now receives her healthcare through the Environmental Health Center, but she is concerned that funding for the center will dry up before the need for care ends.

Catherine McVay Hughes, chairperson of Community Board 1’s W.T.C. Redevelopment Committee, questioned the federal government’s decision to continue studying the problem.

“It’s been almost seven years,” she said. “How much more studying do they need to do?”

Hughes is worried that the government will spend all its time and money studying the problem — leaving few resources to actually solve it. Hughes also does not trust the federal government to be objective.

“They have a financial incentive not to find a correlation [between exposure to W.T.C. toxins and illness],” she said.

It is not clear from the H.H.S. report how much money the department will devote to non-responders this year. The federal government has $185 million in the bank for 9/11-related treatment from previous Congressional allocations, including the $108 million from last December. With the $25 million Bush added in this year, the government has $210 million to spend. That will cover the costs of the first responder program through the end of the next fiscal year, and some of it will go gather data about non-responders, but Babin, the H.H.S. spokesperson, did not know how much.

As it stands now, the federal funding of 9/11 health is a yearly tug-of-war budget negotiation, with no guarantees for the future. To end this cycle, Nadler, Maloney and Fossella wrote the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. The bill would guarantee care for all those sickened by exposure to 9/11 toxins, including non-responders, and would reopen the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.

The bill attracted its 100th sponsor last week, and New York’s delegation is working on getting more sponsors to move the bill forward. Maloney said in a statement that she hopes to pass the bill by the seventh anniversary of 9/11 this fall.

If the federal government is going to provide funding for non-responders within the next fiscal year, they have to get going, said James Melius, an administrator for the New York State Laborers’ Health and Safety Trust Fund who sits on advisory groups for several 9/11 treatment programs. Contracts for services need to go out three to six months before the services are required, he said.

“It seems late to be studying the problem and not providing the money designated for medical monitoring and treatment,” Melius said. “We surely are in need of it.”

The city’s programs for non-responders at Bellevue Hospital, Gouverneur Health Services and Elmhurst Hospital in Queens are seeing steady increases in patients, showing the increasing need for services, Melius said.

“The federal money is critical,” he added. “My concern is that the need and demand for treatment is going to quickly outstrip the capability of [the city] to provide the kind of quality care needed.”

Gold9472

06-04-2008, 04:31 PM

Ex-Bush health chief's firm wins Sept. 11 work
AP NewsBreak: Sept. 11 health contract awarded to company led by ex-Bush health chief

http://www.rawstory.com/news/mochila/Ex_Bush_health_chief_s_firm_wins_Se_06042008.html

DEVLIN BARRETT
Jun 04, 2008 13:54 EST

As President Bush's health chief, Tommy Thompson proudly trumpeted millions of taxpayer dollars to help workers sickened by the Sept. 11 attacks at the World Trade Center, even amid complaints that his agency wasn't doing enough.

Now, Thompson's private company has won an $11 million contract to treat some of those same workers — the latest twist in a fitful government effort to determine how many people were made ill by the toxic debris — and to care for them.

The contract awarded by the Centers for Disease Control is aimed at tracking the health of between 4,000 and 6,000 workers who live outside the New York City area, where a separate health monitoring program is in place. The CDC is part of the Health and Human Services Department, which Thompson headed in Bush's first term.

Internal e-mails obtained by The Associated Press show that the one-year contract went to Logistics Health, Inc., a La Crosse, Wis.-based company where Thompson is president.

While secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Thompson was pressed by New York lawmakers to take a more active and aggressive role in tracking and treating Sept. 11-related health problems.

"It is ironic that former HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson's firm won the contract to provide the services, given the history of delay from the Bush administration when he was secretary and now," said Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y. "But I am glad these heroes are finally getting the help they deserve."

A spokeswoman for Logistics Health did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

The government has struggled to effectively track the health issues of Ground Zero workers who live outside New York. Advocates and some lawmakers have unsuccessfully sought to establish a permanent, government-funded treatment program.

In the years since the 2001 attacks, studies show workers who toiled at the site have had higher than normal rates of lung problems and post-traumatic stress. Others have complained of an increase in gastrointestinal disorders.

The CDC contract was awarded after the government received proposals from four different companies, including Thompson's, officials said. The contract went to Logistics Health based on "an evaluation of everything from cost to technical abilities to past performance," CDC spokeswoman Bernadette Burden said.

Thompson's company already provides some medical services for the Army.

Logistics Health will provide annual examinations to World Trade Center responders around the country, diagnose and treat Sept. 11-related conditions and provide a pharmacy benefit to those responders.

Late last year, the government halted an effort to organize health monitoring for Ground Zero workers spread around the U.S., saying the program could cost far more money than Congress has provided.

Estimates on how much treatment these workers need — and how much it will cost — vary widely. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y. and New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg have put the figure at around $400 million a year, but that amount includes treating the much larger group of patients who live in and around New York City.

According to New York City officials, some 400,000 people were exposed to Ground Zero dust, and 71,000 have enrolled in a long-term health monitoring program for people with and without health problems. Health advocates believe the number of people who have become sickened years after their exposure is in the thousands.

Gold9472

06-04-2008, 09:50 PM

After Failing To Protect 9/11 First Responders From Toxic Threats, Thompson Awarded Contract To Treat Them

http://thinkprogress.org/2008/06/04/tommy-thompson-911/

Tommy Thompson served as President Bush’s Secretary of Health and Human Services from January 2001 (http://www.whitehouse.gov/government/thompson-bio.html) to 2005 (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6644980/). It was during his tenure, after the 9/11 attacks, that the Bush administration largely ignored the health risks facing first responders at the World Trade Center site. Doctors concluded that the dust there was basically a “toxic soup (http://www.nysun.com/new-york/top-doctors-say-trade-center-dust-could-cause/40891/),” leading to serious health problems for workers. Then-EPA administrator Christine Todd Whitman was also accused of lying about the air quality (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2007/12/11/2007-12-11_christie_whitman_lied_about_ground_zero_.html). Approximately 40,000 people were exposed to the dust (http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ATTACKS_HEALTH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=POLITICS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-04-10-54-16), and “71,000 have enrolled in a long-term health monitoring program for people with and without health problems.”

Many of these first responders have since been unable to attain health coverage (http://thinkprogress.org/2007/05/19/sicko-stars-thank-moore-for-cuba-trip/) from either their insurers or the U.S. government. As the AP notes, Thompson was “criticized for not doing enough (http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ATTACKS_HEALTH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=POLITICS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-04-10-54-16)” to help these workers.

Yet apparently, the Bush administration believes Thompson did a hecukva job dealing with the aftermath of 9/11. The Centers for Disease Control has awarded Thompson an $11 million contract (http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ATTACKS_HEALTH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=POLITICS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-04-10-54-16) to treat some of those very same workers who became sick on Thompson’s watch:

The contract awarded by the Centers for Disease Control is aimed at tracking the health of between 4,000 and 6,000 workers who live outside the New York City area, where a separate health monitoring program is in place. The CDC is part of the Health and Human Services Department, which Thompson headed in Bush’s first term.

Internal e-mails obtained by The Associated Press show that the one-year contract went to Logistics Health, Inc., a La Crosse, Wis.-based company where Thompson is president.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) responded, “It is ironic that former HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson’s firm won the contract to provide the services, given the history of delay (http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/ATTACKS_HEALTH?SITE=FLROC&SECTION=POLITICS&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2008-06-04-10-54-16) from the Bush administration when he was secretary and now.”

Gold9472

06-04-2008, 09:52 PM

Former Bush Official Criticized For His 9/11 Response Will Track WTC Workers' Health

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=82353

June 04, 2008

A former Bush White House official criticized for his response to 9/11 was awarded a multi-million dollar contract to track the health of first responders Wednesday.

The Centers for Disease Control selected Tommy Thompson's Logistics Health to monitor thousands of September 11th workers who live outside the New York area.

Thompson, the former head of the federal Health and Human Services Department during Bush's first term, has been slammed by local lawmakers for not doing enough to help workers exposed to toxic debris.

City officials estimate that 400,000 people were exposed to dangerous dust at the World Trade Center, but up to 6,000 of them are non tri-state area residents and the government has struggled to keep count.

Gold9472

06-17-2008, 05:53 PM

First Responders From 9/11 Gather For Day Of Remembrance

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=203&aid=82692

June 15, 2008

September 11th rescue workers and first responders came together Saturday for a day of remembrance.

Several non-profit groups organized the first ever World Trade Center Responder Day in Lower Manhattan. The day featured an opportunity for first responders to take the stage and share their stories of 9/11.

Despite the honors they've received for their work that day, they say many Americans are letting it become a distant memory.

"I'm proud of what I did, but unfortunately we've been forgotten," said first responder Marvin Bethea. "We went from being heroes to being treated like zeroes. That's very, very unfortunate."

"It's really sad in the sense that so much more needs to be done," said responder Alex Sanchez. "But we are a government of the people for the people. So this is what gives me the drive to come here today."

"I would venture to say the majority of the people here are tourists," added responder Jim LePenna. "Not even native New Yorkers come out to support the people who, at a moment's notice, responded to New York."

An exhibit was also set up at Trinity Church highlighting the work done by rescue crews.

Gold9472

06-17-2008, 05:53 PM

9/11 workers hold first rally at World Trade Center

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/06/14/2008-06-14_911_workers_hold_first_rally_at_world_tr-3.html

By Robert Erikson
DAILY NEWS WRITER
Saturday, June 14th 2008, 11:02 PM

Donna Michaels wipes away tears after speaking about her husband, Thomas, at World Trade Center Responders Day in Manhattan. Showalter for News

Donna Michaels wipes away tears after speaking about her husband, Thomas, at World Trade Center Responders Day in Manhattan.

Dozens of 9/11 responders gathered downtown Saturday to recount their stories of heroism and ask for more help from the government.

The first World Trade Center Responders Day was designed as a "day of appreciation" for rescuers and laborers who spent months at Ground Zero, said Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), who is sponsoring a bill that would mandate healthcare funding for sick 9/11 workers.

One by one, rescuers approached an open microphone at Vesey and Greenwich Sts. to tell their stories before attending an interfaith church service.

"Politicians are looking to forget about this, but today is to remind them that we are here and we are slowly but surely dying," said Frank Silecchia, 54, a laborer with Local 731 who suffers from sleep apnea, respiratory problems and posttraumatic stress disorder after working at Ground Zero for 10 months.

"It has become a nightmare every night and a daymare every day," he said. "The pain just doesn't go away."

Susan Sidel, an attorney, volunteered for three months in supply tents and also lives downtown, so she's doubly concerned about her health.

"The real tragedy is the betrayal of these heroes by the city we worked to help save," she said.

Gold9472

06-17-2008, 05:53 PM

Legislation Extends More Aid To 9/11 Workers

http://www.northcountrygazette.org/2008/06/14/more_aid_to_workers/

Posted on Saturday, 14 of June , 2008 at 8:02 am

ALBANY—Governor David A. Paterson will submit legislation to cover additional public workers who risked their health and safety in the rescue, recovery and clean-up efforts at the World Trade Center after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The legislation embraces the unanimous recommendations of the bi-partisan September 11th Worker Protection Task Force.

Under the Governor’s legislation, the “presumptive accidental disability retirement benefit” now available to some 9/11 first responders will be extended to additional first responders. A committee of doctors on the Task Force found that additional workers were exposed to the same toxins and psychological trauma as those originally covered.

“In the midst of the devastation of September 11th, men and women in public service risked their lives to aid in the search for survivors and victims,” said Governor Paterson. “As the nation grieved these heroes returned to work day and night, selflessly placing their own health at risk. It is our duty to offer them the protections they deserve in their time of illness.”

Additional first responders covered under this bill include state and county corrections officers and deputy sheriffs ; the non-uniformed first responders who were not required to undergo a pre-employment physical examination; 911 dispatchers; first responders who worked for any period of time within the first 48 hours after the first plane hit the World Trade Center; emergency vehicle radio repair mechanics; vested members of a public pension system who terminated their employment prior to filing a claim; and workers who became disabled more than two years after 9/11 but before an extension was granted in the Workers Compensation Law which would have covered them.

In addition, the registration deadlines for the accidental disability presumption and the Workers Compensation Law extension will be extended from the current dates of June 14, 2009, and Aug. 14, 2008 to Sept. 11, 2010 and the filing deadline for presumptive accidental disability will be extended from the amended date of June 14, 2009 to Sept. 11, 2010.

Since many of the non-uniformed NYC and State workers at the site had not been required to undergo a pre-employment physical examination, a prerequisite to receiving benefits under the prior 9/11 legislation, the Governor’s bill extends benefits to those employees if they provide access to medical records and demonstrate the absence of a pre-qualifying condition prior to Sept. 11, 2001. In addition, the geographic boundaries of the 9/11 disability benefits law are being expanded to emergency vehicle garages and emergency call centers, because the Task Force found emergency vehicle radio repair mechanics were exposed to dust and 911 operators experienced psychological trauma that has led to disabilities similar to those suffered by workers at the World Trade Center site.

Finally, current law requires that claimants participated in the WTC rescue, recovery or cleanup operations for a minimum of 40 hours, but scientific evidence gathered by the Task Force has shown there was a “substantial risk” of developing respiratory, gastrointestinal and / or mental health disability for first responders at the site during the first 48 hours after the first aircraft hit the World Trade Center Towers. Therefore, the Governor’s legislation covers any first responder who worked during the first 48 hours after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

The Task Force includes members appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the Assembly, Majority Leader, the Mayor of the City of New York, the State and City Comptrollers, the State Commissioners of Health, Labor and Civil Service and the Director of the State Division of Budget. It is charged with making recommendations regarding the adequacy of coverage and treatment for disabilities resulting from the rescue, recovery and clean-up after Sept. 11, 2001.

On March 4, the Task Force released an Interim Report, including a Report of the Doctor’s Committee to the Task Force, which can be found on the Department of Labor’s website: http://www.labor.state.ny.us/pressreleases/PDFs/911_WPTF_Interim_Report_March_4_2008.pdf 6-14-08

Gold9472

06-17-2008, 05:53 PM

Paterson wants to expand 9/11 disability benefits

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-nyzero135725235jun13,0,269189.story

The Associated Press
June 13, 2008

Gov. David Paterson wants to expand disability benefits for more workers who helped in the rescue and recovery efforts after Sept. 11.

Paterson plans to introduce a bill that would extend disability retirement benefits to more first responders who worked at Ground Zero in the months after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The bill would eliminate a requirement that workers have had a physical before they were hired, as long as they offer some pre-9/11 medical records.

It would extend the disability benefit to workers such as state and county corrections officers, any first responder who worked in the first 48 hours after Sept. 11, and 911 operators.

The proposal follows recommendations issued by a state Department of Labor task force.

Gold9472

06-17-2008, 05:55 PM

EPA whistleblower trial delves into 9/11 pollution coverup, toxic waste in fertilizer and more

http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/environment/archives/141267.asp

6/17/2008

So far those subscription-only services are the only semi-mainstream media outlets I've found that are covering the whistleblower court case being pursued by gadfly and professional pain-in-the-side Hugh Kaufman of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Apparently there has been discussion of the 9/11 Manhattan pollution coverup, hazardous waste in fertilizer, and more. The trial is before a Department of Labor administrative court, and considers EPA's appeal of a previous Labor board ruling that Kaufman was fired for being "too effective" in his job.

The P-I was one of the few media outlets to cover former EPA Secretary Christine Todd Whitman's dismantling of the office where Kaufman worked, the EPA Ombudsman's Office, in 2002. Kaufman was the No. 2 man there, answering to Robert Martin, who we consider something of a native son since he's a member of Washington's Makah Indian Tribe. The office specialized in hearing the complaints of citizens living near Superfund sites.

The acerbic Kaufman has a long history of criticizing the very agency where he was employed. And in 1998, EPA made it official, appointing him to the ombudsman's office. But he was axed, along with Martin, and questions came up immediately about Administrator Whitman's husband's ties to a bank with interests in a Denver Superfund site. She was later cleared by the agency's inspector general.

Online, the only recounting of the trial I could find was a Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility press release. Forunately, an appeal to the Society of Environmental Journalists listserv turned up a piece by Katie Boyle* of Greenwire. It's subscription-only, but I'll tell you a few tidbits under the fair use doctrine:

EPA attorney Charlie Starrs, according to Boyle, contended the case was all about Kaufman's aforementioned style, saying he "had a fairly high opinion of himself, to put it gently. It's not a matter of what he did, but how he did it." Kaufman's lawyer, Regina Markey, countered:
Hugh, one of the founders of the agency, was relegated to library work in a small cubicle. His voice and the voice of the American people were silenced.
P-I researcher Marsha Milroy also unearthed a story by Inside Washington publications, publishers of Inside EPA, another subscription-only service. It reveals:
Kaufman's attorney, Regina Markey, attempted to bring Kimberly Flynn -- a member of the Community-Labor Coalition, an organization involved in the environmental impacts of the trade center collapse -- to testify on Kaufman's behalf. But Burke blocked Flynn from testifying, saying that her testimony was irrelevant because the case centers on EPA actions that occurred before the trade center collapse.
Kaufman is an odd duck, to say the least. His professional work, of course, did not endear him to the agency's professional staff. For example, in Idaho's Silver Valley, where we have documented the effects of decades of mining abuses, Kaufman came down on the side of mine owner and EPA nemesis Bob Hopper.

I heard from at least one D.C. journalist who spent some time at the labor board's proceeding, but concluded the material in question was all rehash.

Kaufman's whisteblowing stretches back to the Carter administration. He was active in putting the spotlight on questionable EPA decisions under the Reagan administration's Anne Gorsuch Burford, who was forced to resign. William Ruckelshaus, now of Seattle, stepped in to rebuild the agency.

*A different reporter was originally credited with this story. Our apologies, Ms. Boyle.

Gold9472

06-20-2008, 08:54 AM

'Journey for 9/11' supports rescuers

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20080620-9999-1m20walk.html

By Michael Stetz
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
June 20, 2008

SAN DIEGO – His body is no stranger to punishment and grind. George Martin, after all, spent 14 years playing professional football.

But at age 55, he put it to the test again.

Because people he considers to be true heroes are hurting.

The former New York Giants defensive end began walking across America eight months ago to raise money for rescue workers who rushed to ground zero on Sept. 11, 2001, and are now suffering myriad illnesses – including lung disease and post traumatic stress disorder.

One medical study showed that 70 percent of the 40,000 or so responders have suffered lung disease and other problems because of the dust and debris. One in five has lost lung capacity.

Some don't have adequate health or disability insurance, Martin said. Some were volunteers who took it upon themselves to go through the rubble and pitch in, however they could.

Online: For more about George Martin's “Journey for 9/11,” go to ajourneyfor911.info

“These are the real heroes,” Martin said of the workers. “I'm not going into a burning house unless someone is inside with my last name. They do it all the time.”

Tomorrow, after 3,020 miles that began in New York on Sept. 16, Martin finally ends his walk, “a Journey for 9/11,” here in San Diego at the Embarcadero. He has raised more than $2 million, and three New York-area medical institutions have agreed to match that in health care services.

He's nearby now and resting in a Little Italy hotel before the big moment, which will be attended by California police and fire personnel and fellow athletes. Ground zero responders will be present, too.

The ending is bittersweet, Martin said. He saw America up close, raised millions of dollars and even got the added bonus of losing 40 pounds.

He averaged about 22 miles a day and went through 24 pairs of shoes and 80 pairs of socks.

He suffered a couple of blisters but they were never bad enough to keep him from walking. He only took off Sundays and when the weather was too bad.

Throughout his journey, he's been greeted warmly, he said, even though he admits he wondered what kind of reaction he would get in some parts of the nation, given that he's African-American and, at 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, rather hard to miss.

“It makes me proud,” he said of the reaction from everyday folks throughout the country.

Martin was used to attention when he was with the Giants, playing before 70,000 fans each week. He won a Super Bowl with the team in 1986, electrifying the region.

And he walked away from the game a winner, his health intact and his future secure. He lived a content life in northern New Jersey with his wife and their four children.

When the terrorist attack hit, Martin was personally affected. He lost neighbors. One close friend lost a son who worked in the second tower struck at the World Trade Center, right at the point of impact.

“He suffered unimaginable agony,” Martin said of his friend. “It tore my soul apart.”

In the New York region, people still struggle because they live and work so close to the scene, he said. They pass by it. They see the empty spaces in the skyline.

“It's very tangible to us back there,” he said.

And as reports began surfacing of the plight of the rescue workers, Martin felt called to duty. So he got a leave from his job as vice president of sports marketing at AXA Equitable in New York and started walking.

“I never wanted the journey to overcome the mission,” he said. “I want the cause to succeed; that's my goal.”

Gold9472

06-21-2008, 02:53 PM

Agreement gives more 9/11 workers health benefits

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/20/AR2008062002478.html?hpid=sec-health

The Associated Press
Friday, June 20, 2008; 6:28 PM

ALBANY, N.Y. -- Gov. David Paterson said Friday that he has reached an agreement with New York state legislative leaders to extend health benefits to hundreds of workers who toiled at the World Trade Center site after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

More than 8,800 New York City workers applied for a "presumptive accidental disability retirement benefit" for illnesses they developed after working at ground zero after the attacks.

Paterson says the legislation will benefit more than 1,000 workers who were turned down because they didn't get physical exams before they were hired, which had been a requirement to obtain the benefit.

The new law gives them benefits if they provide access to medical records and demonstrate they didn't have the health problems beforehand.

Gold9472

06-24-2008, 10:39 PM

City Questions 9/11 Workers’ Claims of Illness

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/25/nyregion/25health.html?ref=nyregion

When there are masses like this in the mass tort case against the City, there will always be a few that stain the legitimacy of those that are severely sick and ill from their heroic action at ground zero following the horrific events from 9/11/01. Do not believe for one second that many brave souls, men and woman, are not sick because of the toxic cloud they worked under, and do not believe for one second that they are not sick because of the lies told by our City, State and Federal Government about the air quality.

I have lived 9/11 everyday since 9/11. Seeing first hand healthy men and woman get sicker and sicker, and have sadly seen some die. For those who have lied about their role in history is disappointing, but for thosethat have seen history lie to them, I stand by you all and give you my 100% support. - John Feal, 9/11 First Responder And Founder Of The FealGood Foundation (http://www.fealgoodfoundation.com/)

By ANTHONY DePALMA
Published: June 25, 2008

The first detailed review of the medical records of nearly 10,000 ground zero workers who are suing New York City and its contractors suggests that many are not as sick as their lawyers have claimed, attorneys for the city say.

The city’s review, based on medical records submitted in federal court by the workers and their lawyers, found that as many as 30 percent of the workers reported nothing more than common symptoms like runny nose or cough. Their records, according to the review, did not indicate that doctors had ever diagnosed a specific disease.

In fact, more than 300 workers admitted in court documents that they were not ill at all.

Lawyers for the city, who conducted the review in response to a court order to sort out the seriousness of the claims, also found that many records were contradictory or incomplete, making it difficult to determine when an ailment began or how long it persisted. The documents included few records before Sept. 11, 2001.

The city, which faces a huge financial liability in the lawsuit, has ample reason to play down the claims of firefighters, police officers, construction workers and others who say they became ill because they were not given proper breathing equipment during the nine-month rescue and recovery operation at ground zero.

The workers’ lawyers have sharply criticized the city’s review, calling it skewed and largely inaccurate. They have consistently claimed — but have never released a detailed analysis of the claim — that the workers suffer from a broad range of medical problems, mostly respiratory or gastrointestinal sicknesses, but also more serious conditions like cancer, chronic pulmonary disease and sarcoidosis, a lung-scarring disease.

The city’s findings have no immediate impact on the litigation because the court is not ready to rule on the severity of illnesses or make connections between diseases and exposure to ground zero dust. But the review is important despite its obvious limitations. Until now there has been no attempt to categorize the extent of illnesses in these workers, assumed to be the most badly injured of about 40,000 or more who labored at the World Trade Center site.

And the conflict over the review findings is a preview of how difficult it could be to prove that trade center dust — a complex mix of materials created by the collapse of the twin towers — sickened workers.

Much is riding on the result. Hundreds of workers who could not return to jobs after 9/11 have had their lives interrupted until the litigation is settled. The city and its contractors could be forced to pay $1 billion or more in compensation if they are found to have been negligent in not ensuring that the workers received breathing masks and wore them.

The judge hearing the individual cases, Alvin K. Hellerstein of United States District Court in Manhattan, has criticized the workers’ lawyers for not providing complete medical records back to 1995. He has given them until the end of this month to produce thousands of missing documents so that both sides can come up with a system, known as a severity chart, to classify injuries by type and seriousness.

“Getting those records is imperative in order for us to get a real understanding of the medical conditions of this population,” James E. Tyrell Jr., a lawyer with the firm Patton Boggs whom the city has hired to lead its defense, said in an interview.

To help prepare the severity chart, the city’s lawyers did their statistical review based on the records they had: nine-page documents, called short-form complaints, that were prepared for each of the 9,618 workers by their lawyers.

That review, Mr. Tyrell said, shows that while many workers may be genuinely sick, it appears that many others are not. “A relatively high percentage of the plaintiffs either acknowledge that they are not sick, or refer to medical conditions that are common to the general population, with no indication that those conditions were caused by 9/11,” he said.

According to a letter the city lawyers sent Judge Hellerstein in May, the short-form complaints listed 387 separate ailments, including some — like deviated septum, multiple sclerosis, high blood sugar and Bell’s palsy — that have no apparent connection to ground zero work.

William H. Groner, who with Paul J. Napoli and David E. Worby is representing the workers in court, said so many diseases were listed because of the possibility that they could be linked to the dust.

“We put them in there to protect our clients, because we just didn’t know if they were related,” Mr. Groner said in an interview. He said Bell’s palsy and several other diseases probably could not be linked to the dust at this time, and would be dropped.

In one of the most startling findings in the city’s review, 2,902 workers have claimed only minor ailments, like cough or congestion, that are common among New Yorkers. In the letter to the court, Mr. Tyrell said he had classified as minor injuries those in which workers alleged only a symptom like a cough, not a diagnosed disease. Others who claimed more serious injuries did not always provide medical records supporting their claims.

And 306 workers, the letter said, did not claim any past or current physical injury.

Mr. Groner accused the city of distorting the true medical condition of the workers, saying that many upper respiratory ailments like runny nose can be symptoms of or precursors to debilitating lower respiratory problems and obstructive lung diseases.

But he conceded that some plaintiffs might not be injured at all. He said their complaints were included because the workers feared that they could develop cancer or some other serious illness in the future. He said New York law allowed them to sue if they had “a rational basis” for their fear.

In another part of the city’s review, lawyers looked at the medical files of a random sample of 500 workers. The lawyers found that the files of 13 percent did not list a diagnosed illness. The ailments of half of the workers were not diagnosed until after 2004; the illnesses of 18 percent were not diagnosed until 2006. Mr. Tyrell said that raised questions about their connection to 9/11.

Thirty-seven percent of the sampled workers admitted that they were current or former smokers, an important fact in determining the causes contributing to respiratory problems.

Mr. Groner acknowledged that workers had not yet produced all the medical records the judge had requested. But he said his team did not start to collect the files until after a federal appeals court ruled this year that the question of the city’s immunity from suits could be answered only case by case.

Since then, he said, his side has cooperated fully with the city and produced more than 24,000 specific medical records. He said the city had also received permission from many workers to seek additional employment and medical records on its own.

Although the workers’ lawyers have not released any review of the records, one statistic they have provided turned out to be inaccurate.

In a recent letter to Judge Hellerstein, they stated that at least 128 workers — not necessarily their clients — had died as a result of ground zero injuries, citing a continuing investigation by the State Department of Health.

They admitted in an interview, however, that that number was a misinterpretation of the state’s data. The Health Department has registered the deaths of 329 ground zero workers and has identified the cause for 128 of those, but has not yet linked any to ground zero. Some are unlikely to ever be connected to work at the trade center site because they were highway accidents, assaults and homicides.

“We misread the concept of confirmed causes of death as being ground zero-related,” Mr. Groner said. “We just misread it.”

Mr. Groner said that medical studies by the Fire Department and the Mount Sinai Medical Center had linked trade center dust to a broad range of respiratory and gastrointestinal ailments. “These studies and others mirror precisely what we have found with our clients,” Mr. Groner wrote to the judge.

Judge Hellerstein has said he is intent on moving the case forward so that injured workers can be fairly compensated as quickly as possible.

“Either this case is going to be managed or it will become an albatross that controls all our lives,” Judge Hellerstein told the lawyers in May, directing both sides to overcome their differences. “If you can’t come up with a system, I’ll find a different way of doing it myself.”

Gold9472

06-25-2008, 02:06 PM

New York Legislation To Expand Health Care Benefits For 9/11 Workers

http://www.emaxhealth.com/38/23273.html

6/25/2008

Governor David A. Paterson announced plans to submit legislation to cover additional public workers who risked their health and safety in the rescue, recovery and clean-up efforts at the World Trade Center after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The legislation embraces the unanimous recommendations of the bi-partisan September 11th Worker Protection Task Force.

Under the Governor's legislation, the "presumptive accidental disability retirement benefit" now available to some 9/11 first responders will be extended to additional first responders. A committee of doctors on the Task Force found that additional workers were exposed to the same toxins and psychological trauma as those originally covered.

"In the midst of the devastation of September 11th, men and women in public service risked their lives to aid in the search for survivors and victims," said Governor Paterson. "As the nation grieved these heroes returned to work day and night, selflessly placing their own health at risk. It is our duty to offer them the protections they deserve in their time of illness."

Additional first responders covered under this bill include: (i) state and county corrections officers and deputy sheriffs ; (ii) the non-uniformed first responders who were not required to undergo a pre-employment physical examination; (iii) 911 dispatchers; (iv) first responders who worked for any period of time within the first 48 hours after the first plane hit the World Trade Center; (v) emergency vehicle radio repair mechanics; (vi) vested members of a public pension system who terminated their employment prior to filing a claim; and (vii) workers who became disabled more than two years after 9/11 but before an extension was granted in the Workers Compensation Law which would have covered them.

Since many of the non-uniformed NYC and State workers at the site had not been required to undergo a pre-employment physical examination, a prerequisite to receiving benefits under the prior 9/11 legislation, the Governor's bill extends benefits to those employees if they provide access to medical records and demonstrate the absence of a pre-qualifying condition prior to September 11, 2001. In addition, the geographic boundaries of the 9/11 disability benefits law are being expanded to emergency vehicle garages and emergency call centers, because the Task Force found emergency vehicle radio repair mechanics were exposed to dust and 911 operators experienced psychological trauma that has led to disabilities similar to those suffered by workers at the World Trade Center site.

Finally, current law requires that claimants participated in the WTC rescue, recovery or cleanup operations for a minimum of 40 hours, but scientific evidence gathered by the Task Force has shown there was a "substantial risk" of developing respiratory, gastrointestinal and / or mental health disability for first responders at the site during the first 48 hours after the first aircraft hit the World Trade Center Towers. Therefore, the Governor's legislation covers any first responder who worked during the first 48 hours after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

U.S. Senator Charles Schumer said: "Governor Paterson is doing the right thing. Every effort to more thoroughly monitor, test and, if necessary, treat the illnesses of the workers at Ground Zero is a welcome step in the right direction."

U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton said: "I am pleased to welcome legislation that expands benefits to the heroes who responded during our hour of need, and are now suffering adverse health effects because of their selflessness. By extending benefits to these individuals who were critical in our response to the September 11th attacks, New York State is demonstrating that it will not forget the sacrifices made by so many. I commend Governor Paterson for these efforts, and look forward to the swift passage of this legislation."

Congressman Jerrold Nadler said: "I applaud Governor Paterson for introducing this essential legislation.While the fires were still burning at Ground Zero, brave men and women came to New York to provide help. And during their selfless service, these workers unnecessarily exposed themselves to toxins and containments. As Governor Paterson works with the New York State Legislature to pass this worthy bill, Congress must also act. This is a debt that can never fully be repaid, but we must do right by the living victims of 9/11."

Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney said: "All New Yorkers should be proud that Governor Paterson and the State Assembly and Senate are leading the charge to take care of the heroes of 9/11, and it's high time the federal government did the same by passing the Maloney-Nadler-Fossella-King 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. It is a moral imperative for our government to take care of Americans who risked their lives and health to save others in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. The contrast between the state and federal responses to this health crisis could not be clearer: New York is finding new ways to help the heroes of 9/11, while the Bush administration is still trying to avoid this responsibility."

Congressman Peter King said: "The heroes of 9/11 became sick after working in the dust cloud of Ground Zero to save the lives of others. It is our duty to develop a plan to monitor and care for these responders. I fully support the establishment of the World Trade Center Health Program and will do all I can to ensure that the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act becomes law."

Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said: "This bill will help ensure that first responders, who put their lives on the line in the minutes, days, weeks and months after the September 11th attacks, get the health care treatment and benefits they deserve. I thank the members of the 9/11 Worker Protection Task Force for their work. The Senate advocated for the establishment of the task force in the original legislation that addressed this issue. This bill mirrors the task force's recommendations for ensuring that 9/11 heroes are properly taken care of."

Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith said: "Legislation to expand health care benefits beyond its initial scope, which left out hundreds of 9/11 workers, was long overdue. People from across the city, state, and country fearlessly risked their lives in an act of patriotism and their efforts should not be forgotten. It is time for the legislators to stand up for those workers the same way they stood up for us in the aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center--unconditionally. I join my colleagues in commending the Governor on introducing this bill and call on the legislature to pledge full support to expand health care benefits to 9/11 workers."

Senator George Onorato, Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Labor Committee, said: "I commend Governor Paterson and the September 11th Worker Protection Task Force for their efforts to expand needed health care benefits to additional men and women who aided in search and recovery efforts at the World Trade Center. We have an obligation to provide care for these brave first responders who risked their own health and safety in service to others on that dreadful day."

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said: "This measure is a simple matter of fairness for the men and women whose health has suffered in the aftermath of their work as first responders to the September 11th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. I am pleased that Governor Paterson has followed the recommendation of the September 11th Worker Protection Task Force and, introduced legislation to extend health and disability benefits to these individuals -- including many who live or work in Lower Manhattan -- who served with such extraordinary dedication on September 11th and in the difficult days that followed the terrorist attack."

Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco said: "The courageous first-responders who risked their lives to help save fellow New Yorkers in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks are genuine heroes and fully deserving of expanded access to health care benefits. We owe these heroes a profound debt of gratitude on behalf of a grateful nation that was inspired and deeply moved by the selfless heroism and bravery displayed by our first responders. I applaud Governor Paterson for making the expansion of health care benefits to 9/11 workers a priority and I look forward to working with him and my legislative colleagues to ensure these heroes continue to know just how much they are truly appreciated by all New Yorkers."

Assemblymember Peter Abbate, Chair of the Assembly Government Employees Committee, said: "By extending health and disability benefits to these additional workers, the Governor is acknowledging the vitally important tasks they performed on September 11th and the days following the devastating terrorist attack, as well as the fact that, in performing their duties, these workers were exposed to conditions that put their health at serious risk. It is important to note that the recommendation to provide benefits to these workers was based on the careful work of the bipartisan September 11th Worker Protection Task Force."

Assemblymember Joseph Saladino, Ranking member of the Assembly Governmental Employees Committee, said: "It is an honor to work with Governor Patterson to provide further protections and assistance to those selfless heroes whose only concern was to rescue the lives of Americans in the hours and days following the 9/11 attacks on our nation. As a lawmaker whose focus is protecting those who protect the public I am eager to pass this legislation and make a difference for so many men and women who now and in the future will be suffering do to their unselfish acts. When we called on them needing their assistance the first responders came running, now is our turn to do the same."

Lou Matarazzo, Vice Chairman of the September 11th Worker Protection Task Force, said: "The original legislation might have overlooked some of the workers who risked their lives responding to the attack on the World Trade Center, and had conditions that were too stringent for all affected workers to receive benefits. This legislation goes a long way toward correcting those conditions."

Patrick J. Lynch, President of the New York City Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, said: "Clearly Governor Paterson recognizes the great personal sacrifice made by all those who rallied to save and help the city recover after the attacks of 9/11. The Governor's proposal expands benefits to those responders whose welfare fell between the cracks of the first law. This bill should be supported by all of our legislators and signed into law as quickly as possible. We add our voice to all of those praising Governor Paterson for his proposal."

Steve Cassidy, President of the Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York, said: "We applaud the governor for his proactive support of firefighters and all first responders."

Gold9472

06-26-2008, 01:28 PM

A Message From 9/11 First Responder John Feal

Friends, Supporters and concerned Americans:

Many of you have supported the Fealgood Foundation (http://www.fealgoodfoundation.com/) & the 9/11 responders that have become ill from their heroic actions at Ground Zero while working underneath that toxic cloud that has taken away their ability to fend for themselves and their families. Moreso than ever, these brave men and women need our help. I know many of you are feeling the effects of a slumping economy that has no bright future. I know many of you are angered at our current administration, and I know since 9/11/01 we have all fought for truth, justice and that yesterday's heroes will not be forgotten. I implore you all to help out these unfortunate souls who have been denied and neglected by our City, State and Federal Governments. These amazing individuals can not even put food on their tables, put gas in their cars, let alone pay their rents or mortgages. Whether it is a $1, $10, or $100.00, it would help greatly these sickened heroes. In the past I have been humbled by your support and generosity. Now, as Americans that take care of their own while the Government sits idle, I ask for your help one more time in this time of need. You can visit our web site at fealgoodfoundation.com and through paypal, use a credit card or send a check. Together, let's show this government how we treat our heroes.

Sincerely,

John Feal
Founder & President of the FGF
Injured 9/11 responder
Kidney donor
Above And Beyond Citizen Honors recipient from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society

Gold9472

06-28-2008, 01:11 PM

Some Clarity From 9/11 First Responder John Feal

(Gold9472: Over the last several months, certain "inconsequential people" have been bothering, and harassing John Feal because of his associations with this movement. They have pushed him to the point of saying things he doesn't necessarily mean. I have asked John for this clarification so there is no confusion as to where he stands.)

To the 9/11 Truth Movement:

Let me start by saying thank you for the years of support, compassion and dedication for the 9/11 responders you have helped. With that being said, you have heard me say "I am not a truther," and I'm not. However, that does not mean I do not support the truth movement. To be a truther, I would have to be involved and committed 100% like I am in running my foundation which helps yesterday's heroes.

I have seen your cause grow immensely and you have gathered an army of great Americans who now share your beliefs. That deserves a big congratulations. I, however, have my reservations at this time to share my views any more then I already have. But, if you look at my track record, in interviews with Luke or Dylan, you will see my subtle hints. So yes, I strongly believe, as Jon Gold says, that elements within our government and the current administration are suspects for the crime of 9/11. Did they lie? Oh yes, I believe that 100%. There are sick and dying men and woman to prove that. My energies are focused and spent on aiding these brave souls.

We all seek the truth, and we all seek what is best for this country. However, we take different paths in searching and fighting for that common goal. I have publicly called out many elected officials on my terms, and have marched to my own beat. I have earned that right to do so. I lost half a foot, and spent 11 weeks in a hospital bed. So, they way I go about bringing out the truth, or disseminating information may not be the way others do, or the way you wish I did. But I will continue to do so, like you all continue to go about your course of actions.

Whether we agree or disagree, that is totally irrelevant. As with any relationship, we must learn that we will not all agree on everything, and in order for that relationship too last, we must learn that the closest thing to a perfect relationship, even with our disagreements, is to respect one another.

John Feal
Founder & President of the FealGood Foundation (http://www.fealgoodfoundation.com)
Injured 9/11 responder
Kidney donor
Above And Beyond Citizen Honors recipient (http://www.aboveandbeyond365.com/html_site/honorees/new_york.html) from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society

Gold9472

07-03-2008, 09:56 AM

Lawyers detail health problems from 9/11

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/2008/07/02/Lawyers_detail_health_problems_from_911/UPI-87071215014513/

Published: July 2, 2008 at 12:01 PM

NEW YORK, July 2 (UPI) -- Lawyers for those who worked at the World Trade Center in New York after the 2001 terrorist attacks say 67 percent suffer from respiratory disease.

Papers filed in court Tuesday claim nearly half, 45 percent, have gastrointestinal problems, the New York Post reported. The lawyers, countering claims by the city that 30 percent have not developed serious health problems, say that their information is still incomplete.

"As information continues to be received, there is a clear picture that these plaintiffs' conditions are tending to get worse, not better," the lawyers said in a letter to U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein.

The firefighters and police officers who worked at Ground Zero were among the fittest people in the city before their time there, the letter said.

Gold9472

07-09-2008, 06:12 PM

9/11 Workers Refute NYC’s Claim of Incomplete Medical Records

http://www.occupationalhazards.com/News/Article/81215/911_Workers_Refute_NYCrsquos_Claim_of_Incomplete_M edical_Records.aspx

By Laura Walter
July 9, 2008

Attorneys representing more than 10,000 Ground Zero workers including police, firefighters and other rescue, recovery and debris clean-up personnel who became ill after working at the World Trade Center site after 9/11 refuted the city’s claims that the plaintiffs produced inadequate medical records for the case.

At a May 29 court conference, the city claimed that most plaintiffs had not produced all of their medical records. The plaintiffs' co-liaison counsel, Worby, Groner, Edelman, Napoli & Bern LLP, however, reported that they had delivered more than 800,000 pages of medical records. The plaintiffs also exchanged an additional 58,451 pages comprising 1,548 individual records since the court conference.

The attorneys indicated that the defendants themselves were at all times in possession and control of thousands of the plaintiffs' own records.

The attorneys also noted that by making allegations of incomplete medical records disclosure in open court, the city’s attorneys were in direct violation of a court case management order. This order required the defendants to first serve a letter advising the plaintiffs' attorneys of the claimed shortcomings in their production before taking their concerns to the court, which the defendants failed to do. The first such deficiency letter came almost three weeks after the May 29 conference.

Medical Record Analysis
After a June 25 New York Times article questioned whether the Ground Zero workers actually were injured, the plaintiffs’ attorneys called the city’s actions a thinly-veiled attempt to lessen its legal, moral and financial responsibility to provide desperately needed benefits and compensation to thousands of workers who suffer respiratory and gastrointestinal injury, cardiac problems, cancer and even death.

“As if it was not enough that these brave men and women have put their health and their families' financial well-being on the line to answer their city's call to duty in the weeks following Sept. 11, 2001, they are now asked to bear the indignity of being labeled malingerers in open court and in the press by the city and its attorneys,” said attorney Marc Jay Bern.

According to a recent in-depth analysis of the medical records reviewed thus far by the plaintiffs' attorneys, Ground Zero workers suffer from numerous ailments, with a typical rescue and recovery worker suffering from an average three different diseases.

The analysis demonstrates that 39 percent of the workers suffer from asthma; 67 percent and 57 percent have upper and/or lower respiratory ailments, respectively; about 20 percent suffer from sleep apnea; 46 percent have GERD; 6 percent experience interstitial lung disease; and nearly 38 percent have cardiac conditions.

Gold9472

07-15-2008, 10:28 AM

EPA on Trial

http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/3794/epa_on_trial/

By Joel Bleifuss
7/14/2008

For more than six years, Hugh Kaufman has been battling the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), his employer for 37 years, with a whistleblower lawsuit. He has been aided by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), a D.C.-based group that represents workers who expose corruption in agencies that oversee environmental quality and public health.

“We get people calling us all the time, but in this administration, more than ever,” says Paula Dinerstein, PEER senior counsel.

In June, Kaufman made his case before a Department of Labor administrative law judge, testifying that former EPA head Christine Todd Whitman closed down the agency’s National Ombudsman Office in an effort to stop investigations that Kaufman was conducting.

As the chief investigator for the agency’s National Ombudsman Office — which investigated public complaints about the EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response — Kaufman had a bird’s eye view of how the public health and safety were routinely subordinated to corporate interests.

“The Reagan, Bush I and Clinton EPAs, were all pretty much the same,” he says. “The Bush administration took a bad EPA and made it worse.”

In February 2001, Kaufman alerted the Denver Post to the fact that Whitman had not recused herself from the negotiations involving a radioactive Superfund site in Denver in which she had a conflict of interest. (Superfund sites are contaminated areas that threaten public health and the environment.) Specifically, Kaufman noted that at the same time Whitman was negotiating the settlement with Citigroup, which owned the site, she held between $100,000 and $250,000 worth of stock in the company, and her husband, John, was the president of a Citigroup-owned company.

The EPA ultimately ruled that Citigroup would pay $7 million of the estimated $35 million cleanup costs, with the public picking up the rest. Such small reimbursements have been typical under the Bush administration’s EPA. In a 2007 report, the Center for Public Integrity found that from 2000 to 2006, reimbursements from companies for site cleanups fell by half compared to the previous six years.

At the June hearing, Kaufman also presented evidence that Whitman, by dismantling the National Ombudsman Office, interrupted his investigations into the agency’s endorsement of sewage sludge as fertilizer. In February, a federal district court in Georgia upheld farmers’ claims that the sludge containing heavy metals contaminated their farmland, writing:

The EPA’s unexplained rejection of Kaufman’s [public health] position … was not based on substantial evidence. … The administrative record contains evidence that senior EPA officials took extraordinary steps to quash scientific dissent, and any questioning of the EPA’s biosolids program.

Whitman was also apparently upset at the ombudsman office’s investigation of the EPA’s lackluster response to 9/11.

In January 2002, Kaufman alerted the media that after 9/11, the EPA had put New Yorkers’ health at risk by failing to warn them of the danger to their health posed by the hazardous waste generated when the Twin Tower buildings collapsed.

He told the New York Daily News: “The evidence I have seen demonstrates that there is and was a substantial health risk that the EPA had documented in its testing. … Mrs. Whitman’s statement to the brave rescue workers and the people who live there was false.”

On Jan. 9, 2002, Kaufman’s boss, National Ombudsman Robert Martin, announced he was going to open an investigation into the agency’s 9/11 response. Five days later, Whitman closed the ombudsman’s office and appropriated the 9/11-related files. Kaufman was eventually reassigned to a paper-pushing desk job.

Due to the possibility for appeals, the courts won’t resolve Kaufman’s case prior to Inauguration Day 2009. Consequently, according to a PEER press release, “The fate of the National Ombudsman Office may be one of the early decisions facing the next administration seeking to reform a very troubled EPA.”

In other words, Kaufman’s fate rests in the hands of the EPA administrator appointed by the next president.

Gold9472

07-24-2008, 02:07 PM

U.S. to Grant $30 Million for Civilians’ 9/11 Ailments

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/24/nyregion/24x-health.html?ref=nyregion

By JAMES BARRON
Published: July 24, 2008

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is expected to announce on Thursday that it plans to award $30 million to hospitals and clinics that monitor and treat residents, students and other so-called nonresponders who were exposed to dust and smoke at ground zero.

These nonresponders were not among the rescue and recovery workers sent to the World Trade Center site after the twin towers were destroyed on 9/11. Some of those workers have complained of respiratory and gastrointestinal ailments. Thousands of firefighters, for example, developed what has become known as the World Trade Center cough.

Christine Branche, the acting director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, said in an interview on Wednesday that the money was set aside in an appropriations bill that Congress passed and President Bush signed in December. She said it would be given as grants in three installments of $10 million, and would go to as many as three hospitals or clinics.

Those institutions will have to apply for the grants. Dr. Branche said she did not know how many might apply.

A spokesman for one place that has treated people exposed to the dust and smoke from the trade center site, the W.T.C. Environmental Health Center at Bellevue Hospital Center, said he had not heard about the grants until a reporter called. But he said he hoped there would be “funding for support services for area residents, cleanup workers and others served by our program.”

Dr. Philip J. Landrigan, chairman of the department of community and preventive medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, which runs a center that has examined more than 15,000 ground zero workers and volunteers, said the center would decide whether to apply once details about the grants were formally announced.

“This is a good thing,” Dr. Landrigan said. “People who lived and worked in Lower Manhattan in the days and weeks after 9/11 were exposed to the dust, and many have never been properly treated.”

Dr. Branche said she did not know how many people might receive treatment once the money had been distributed; she said the institutions receiving the money would decide that. The grants, she said, will be awarded by Sept. 30.

“We’re on track for getting this money out,” she said.

But some members of the New York Congressional delegation said the money was overdue. “I am pleased to see that they are finally releasing these funds, as Congress intended,” Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton said in a statement. “There is no excuse for not addressing the very real needs of residents, students and office workers experiencing adverse health impacts following the 9/11 attacks.”

Representative Jerrold Nadler said the grants were a positive development. “Congress specifically directed the C.D.C. to provide for the health of everyone whose health was undermined by the environmental impacts of 9/11,” he said. “The administration resolutely refused to do it. They’re now doing it. That’s good.”

Dr. Branche was named interim director this month after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention decided not to reappoint Dr. John Howard as director. Since 2006, he had coordinated health programs for workers at ground zero, and had sometimes been at odds with the Bush administration over monitoring and treatment arrangements.

Gold9472

07-31-2008, 08:13 AM

9/11 AID MAY $ICK IT TO US

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07312008/news/regionalnews/9_11_aid_may_ick_it_to_us_122366.htm

7/31/2008

Federal legislation to help those suffering health problems from the World Trade Center terrorist attacks could cost taxpayers up to $13 billion, The Post has learned.

The bill, which will go before a House hearing today and is strongly backed by Mayor Bloomberg, would reopen the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund and would provide funding for medical care for downtown residents and for firefighters, cops, EMTs and construction workers who worked at Ground Zero.

The preliminary estimate of the cost of the measure by the Congressional Budget Office ranged from $8 billion to $13 billion, congressional sources said.

The staggering cost figure hasn't been publicly disclosed yet but was revealed to The Post by sources.

Under the bill, roughly 35,000 people living within 1.5 miles of Ground Zero would be eligible for medical benefits at a projected cost of $3.1 billion. Thousands of first-responders would also receive medical aid at a cost of $2 billion.

As many as 85,000 first-responders could be eligible for medical aid. But the overall cost for their care is less than for residents because most of the first-responders have health insurance that covers a large share of their medical bills, sources said.

The price for reopening the victims' fund was harder to calculate because congressional analysts couldn't predict how many people would apply. They put the cost at anywhere from $3 billion to $8 billion, sources said.

The legislation has the active support of Bloomberg, who last month met with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to push for its passage.

If approved, the bill would spare the city from massive liability by letting sick workers, or families of those who died, apply for aid from a reopened and federally financed Victim Compensation Fund.

After the terror attacks, the federal fund paid out $6 billion to families of those who died on 9/11 and another $1 billion to the injured through 2003.

The current bill is far less costly than an earlier version that was estimated at $30 billion.

Gold9472

07-31-2008, 08:13 AM

Mayor To Testify On 9/11 Workers' Health Bill

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.jsp?stid=1&aid=84370

July 30, 2008

On Thursday, Mayor Michael Bloomberg will testify at a Washington, D.C. hearing on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

The bill is named after a former police detective who served as a recovery worker after the terror attacks.

Zadroga, pictured above, was one of the first police officers whose death was blamed on illnesses he developed from dust inhaled at the Trade Center Site.

The hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.

Programming Note: NY1 will be in Washington, D.C. to provide coverage on the hearing throughout the day.

Gold9472

08-06-2008, 08:09 AM

Kevin M. Delano, firefighter and 9/11 rescue worker

http://www.newsday.com/services/newspaper/printedition/wednesday/longisland/ny-lidela065790602aug06,0,6853181.story

BY ZACHARY R. DOWDY | zachary.dowdy@newsday.com
August 6, 2008

Kevin M. Delano, a firefighter who worked to find survivors of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center, has died of leukemia.

The former Howard Beach, Queens, resident was 54 and died July 30. As a member of Ladder 142 in Ozone Park, Queens, Delano was one of the first people to arrive at the rubble of Ground Zero after the skyscrapers crumbled.

He worked at the site for more than 40 hours straight. He had hoped to find any survivors, but especially sought his close friend, Ray York, of Howard Beach, who was killed.

Delano was retired from the Fire Department of New York and had served as chief of the West Hamilton Beach Volunteer Fire Department in Queens. He also had worked as a transit police officer and a member of the Coast Guard.

In 1980, he married Roseann Pannhorst in Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Howard Beach. Four years later, the couple had a son, Kevin. All the while, Delano balanced his duties as a firefighter, husband and father, often referred to by relatives as the rock of the family.

After retiring from the fire department in 2003 because of health conditions, Delano moved to Blakeslee, Pa., in the Poconos, where he played golf regularly, took up fishing and relaxed. He was later diagnosed with leukemia. His cancer was in remission for some time, then the disease reappeared and he received a bone-marrow transplant.

His doctor said he likely got leukemia because of burning benzene at the World Trade Center site, his wife said yesterday.

A funeral Mass was celebrated Monday at Our Lady of Grace. The ceremony was followed by a full honor guard, including bagpipes and a fire department funeral procession that drove by the West Hamilton Beach Volunteer Fire Department.

Burial was at St. Charles Cemetery in Farmingdale.

Besides his wife and son, Delano is survived by his brothers, Raymond of Virginia and Gerard of Howard Beach; and his sisters, Loretta Giordano of Ozone Park, Patti Fogarty of Howard Beach, Cathy Delano of Gainesville, Fla., and Barbara Jean Johnson, Maureen Chioffee, Jeananne Quinn and Vicky Joyner, all of Vidalia, Ga.

Gold9472

08-08-2008, 06:49 PM

The Environmental Impact Of 9/11

Video
Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWRCw9FDbR4) (GooTube)

Please go here (http://www.911blogger.com/node/2279) to learn more.

Gold9472

08-12-2008, 08:10 AM

9/11 FIRST RESPONDERS INSPIRE NEW YORK MUSICIAN TO HELP OUT

http://www.webwire.com/ViewPressRel.asp?aId=72107

(NEW BERN, NC)—Days after the Twin Towers fell, thousands of first responders aided New York in its devastating crisis, giving Americans a great sense of hope. Seven years later, many of those heroes have been forgotten—and worse, over 15,000 have become gravely ill.

Steven Centore, author of the new book One of Them: A First Responder’s Story, was one of the many who volunteered to assist in the immediate aftermath of the attack on September 11, 2001, and then during the eighteen-month-long recovery efforts.

Mr. Centore’s book has shed light on the neglect of the first responders and caught the attention of New York musician Paul Zunno.

“After reading One of Them, I felt compelled to raise awareness about the great sacrifice that was made by these men and women,” says the musician.

In an attempt to get involved, Mr. Zunno recorded the new single “Hold Me Up” and teamed up with John Feal, founder and president of the FealGood Foundation, a non-profit organization created to provide financial assistance to first responders and educate the public about the effects 9/11 has had on their health.

“The attack didn’t end on September 11,” says Mr. Centore. “It continues to this day as first responders suffer from the aftereffects. It’s almost like radiation poisoning after a nuclear attack—first come the initial victims and then, those who’ve been poisoned by the clouds of lethal dust.”

As of today, the toxins at Ground Zero have affected:

4,517 people with upper respiratory ailments
3,857 with lower respiratory illness
398 with lung disease
2,616 with asthma
1,340 with sleep apnea
2,528 with heart conditions caused or worsened by 9/11

“And that’s only what’s been officially reported in medical records,” says Mr. Centore. “There are a host of other ailments such as cancer, diseases affecting vital organs and mental health issues.”

Mr. Zunno adds, “I’m a New Yorker and should have known about this much sooner. ‘Hold Me Up’ is probably one of the most personal songs I have ever written, and I wanted Steve, John and all of the responders to know that they have my support.”

In an effort to assist Ground Zero workers, Mr. Zunno has decided to donate 100 percent of the profits from his new song (available for download on iTunes and CDbaby.com) to the FealGood Foundation. For more information, you can visit www.zunno.com (http://www.zunno.com).

“I think that if given the opportunity, most people would want to contribute to this cause,” says Mr. Zunno. “Here’s their chance to help while the political end of this gets worked out.”
To learn more about how you can help, or to buy the breakout book One of Them: A First Responder’s Story, visit www.SteveCentore.com (http://www.SteveCentore.com) or www.wadv-oneofthem.com (http://www.wadv-oneofthem.com). The book is also available on Borders.com, Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

For more information about One of Them: A First Responder’s Story, contact Steve Centore directly at Scentore@yahoo.com.

WORLDWIDE ASSOCIATION OF DISABLED VETERANS, INC. and author Steven Centore chose Arbor Books, Inc. (www.ArborBooks.com (http://www.ArborBooks.com)) to design and promote One of Them: A First Responder’s Story. Arbor Books is an internationally renowned, full-service book design, ghostwriting and marketing firm.

Gold9472

08-13-2008, 08:35 AM

Congress urged to fund care for 9/11 responders

http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-11/1218602234192550.xml&coll=1

BY CAROL ANN CAMPBELL
Star-Ledger Staff
Wednesday, August 13, 2008

They inhaled finely ground glass, pulverized concrete and hydrochloric acid. Some pulled off their respirators so they could crawl through tunnels of debris, or communicate with their command center.

Seven years after the attack on the World Trade Center, the men and women who worked at Ground Zero still suffer from serious respiratory and gastrointestinal illnesses -- with no end in sight. In some cases, people are getting worse as they age.

At a gathering yesterday, doctors, politicians and first responders from New Jersey called on the government to continue funding efforts to treat and study the long-term consequences facing those who dug through the rubble of the World Trade Center.

A clinical center in New Jersey that expected to treat and monitor about 200 people is now caring for 1,300, many of them firefighters and police officers, as well as iron and construction workers. They are being treated for asthma, sarcoidosis and pulmonary fibrosis, as well as acid reflux, sinusitis and sleep apnea.

"We can provide the complicated diagnostic tests, specialist care and expensive medications for these conditions," said Iris G. Udasin, a principal investigator of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program.

Udasin directs the center in Piscataway, a joint program of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and Rutgers University. It is one of several places created to treat and monitor World Trade Center first responders.

After the attack, some 90,000 liters of jet fuel created a plume of black smoke containing toxic compounds, such as benzene and metals. Also airborne were microscopic glass, asbestos and lead, according to congressional testimony.

A bill pending in Congress to continue funding for these centers is named for James Zadroga, a New York City police detective who was at Ground Zero. Zadroga's father, a former police chief of North Arlington, told the story yesterday of his son's heroism at the World Trade Center and his eventual illness and death in January of 2006.

Joe Zadroga said his son worked 400 hours at Ground Zero, beginning the day of the attack. His wife was eight months pregnant at the time. Zadroga, who was previously healthy, began coughing while still working at the site, and his illness got progressively worse. He began to go blind, suffer memory loss and eventually was bedridden with respiratory illness

"People kept saying, 'You have to go back to work.' My son could not even drive," the father said. The Ocean County Medical Examiner's Office said in an autopsy that Zadroga, 34, died from breathing toxic particles at Ground Zero.

U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-6th Dist.), pushing for the bill yesterday, said the legislation would provide long-term funding to allow the centers to continue to evaluate emerging methods of treatment.

"We need to screen, treat and put together research to find out what happened and the best way to treat people," Pallone said.

He did not have an estimate on what the bill would cost, but last year, the effort to monitor and treat WTC responders was $108 million, a Pallone staff member said. According to congressional testimony, more than 51,000 responders from across the country have enrolled in the WTC health program, out of about 91,000 people involved in rescue, recovery and clean-up.

Detective Thomas McHale, a Port Authority police office at the World Trade Center, said he has scar tissue in his lungs and has been diagnosed with asthma, atrial fibrillation and an esophogeal condition that can cause cancer if not treated.

"I'm feeling better because I'm being properly treated here," said McHale, who continues to work. He said he does not like to be called a hero.

"The heroes are no longer with us," he said. "People like me, we just went in and did our jobs and did them well."

Gold9472

08-13-2008, 08:36 AM

City cops head out for 9/11 motorcycle ride

http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/417615

August 13, 2008
The Hamilton Spectator

Five Hamilton police officers are heading south on motorcycles to take part in the America's 9/11 Ride to support first responders.

The group of off-duty officers will ride more than 2,000 kilometres on their way to visit the crash sites of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks: Shanksville, Penn., the Pentagon in Washington and the World Trade Center in New York City. The ride starts tomorrow and ends Saturday.

Hamilton police joined the motorcycle memorial ride in 2003 when Hamilton officer Pat Keller, along with Toronto officers, raised $150,000 for the NYPD Widows and Orphans Fund.

This year, Hamilton police are providing the riders with two police motorcycles, while the city is sponsoring the officers. The officers will hand over cash donations from area residents.

Keller said the ride allows Hamilton to honour first responders -- police, firefighters and EMS workers -- who died after the terrorist attacks. This year, money raised in the ride will benefit first responders in smaller communities across the U.S.

Gold9472

08-23-2008, 05:32 PM

FealGood takes to film
Local 9/11 advocacy group to spur Congress with documentary

http://www.timesofsmithtown.com/Articles-i-2008-08-21-75890.113114_FealGood_takes_to_film.html

By Jennifer Choi
August 21, 2008 | 12:22 PM

Nesconset resident John Feal's 9/11 advocacy group has made it their job to fight for sick 9/11 responders. Now they're carrying their mission to the big screen with a documentary titled "Save the Brave."

Feal, who founded the FealGood Foundation to spread awareness about the catastrophic health effects faced by 9/11 first responders, has produced a documentary to advocate the passage of the federal 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which would provide medical coverage and financial compensation for responders who have been exposed to toxins at Ground Zero and their families.

According to Feal, who lost half his foot after a beam fell on him at Ground Zero, "Save the Brave" features Jim Ritchie, John McNamara, Greg Quibell and Charlie Giles, four responders who are battling illnesses contracted from Ground Zero. The goal of this film is to "show Congress it's important to push for new laws to be passed for these guys so their families are taken care of when they're gone," Feal said, adding that he will not sell DVDs of the film, but instead hand-deliver them to every member of the United States Congress.

"They're going to see the truth for once," he said. "There are real people who are suffering from their heroic actions on 9/11."

Feal, who recently met with some elected officials in New Jersey, said information about the aftermath of 9/11 is "not being disseminated" outside New York. "We're an isolated group," he noted. "We're like the Vietnam veterans."

Having served as president of the FealGood Foundation for several years, Feal said he asked himself what else he could do to further spread his message. The idea for "Save the Brave" dawned on him while he was stuck in traffic with Anne Marie Baumann, the foundation's senior vice president and secretary, he recalled. "I just said, "Let's make a movie.'"

"It's an adventure working with John," Baumann said, noting that she met him at an American Red Cross group counseling session in 2001.

"I'm so tired of people saying, 'We had no idea,'" she added. "You have no idea now? You will have an idea [after watching the documentary], so we don't have to hear that anymore."

Baumann, whose New York City police officer husband was involved in the 9/11 rescue effort, said that as a result, he suffered temporary sight loss and is now disabled.

"No one understands the impact and what every family has gone through and still goes through every day of their lives," Baumann states on the foundation's website. "It's time to make a difference. It's not something that you can just get over."

"Save the Brave," which will premiere at the Bellmore Theater on Aug. 28 at 7 pm, will be distributed to members of Congress on Sept. 8 to reiterate this sentiment, Feal said.

"Although we were attacked in New York, this country was attacked," he said. "The federal government has been avoiding the problem. It's like they have political amnesia.… Now, it's about solutions and problem solving. You have a chance to help them, and you should be helping them."

Gold9472

08-29-2008, 08:24 AM

Documentary dedicated to late 9/11 first responder

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/suffolk/ny-nyquib295821045aug29,0,6854954.story

BY MICHAEL FRAZIER
8/29/2008

Racked by pain and the ravages of leukemia, first responder Gregory Quibell of North Babylon allowed film crews to record poignant moments of his life.

For weeks, his visits to doctors and his struggles to pay medical bills were captured for a documentary called "Save the Brave," which premiered last night at the Bellmore Theatre in Bellmore.

The film's opening is dedicated to Quibell, 53, who died Wednesday night at his home, friends said. The film features three other first responders living with Sept. 11-related illnesses.

"The movie had no actors in it. They were real-life heroes," said John Feal, the film's producer, who is president of the nonprofit FealGood Foundation and advocates for sick Sept. 11 responders. "Greg is proof that heroes are dying, and it's unacceptable."

The three others featured in "Save the Brave" are former New York City firefighter John McNamara of Shirley, former FDNY chief Jim Riches of Brooklyn and former emergency services worker Charlie Giles of Barnegat, N.J.

A DVD of the film will be sent to Congress to highlight the need for a national Sept. 11 health bill, Feal said. Lawmakers are considering a proposal that would create federal programs for medical treatment and compensation for ill responders and residents living near Ground Zero.

Anne Marie Baumann, senior vice president of the FealGood Foundation, said she became involved in the foundation after her husband, Christopher Baumann - an NYPD officer - had multiple health issues after working at Ground Zero.

She said if one thing comes from the documentary being released, she hopes it's "that the bill is passed. I know the sickness isn't going to stop, but the pain can stop."

In February, Quibell, a state correction department worker, traveled to Washington and demanded more money for health programs for those who responded to the terrorist attacks.

Quibell was one of several dozen search-and-rescue workers deputized by federal authorities to assist at Ground Zero. In the aftermath, he suffered from pulmonary fibrosis and then was diagnosed late last year with leukemia.

He said exposure to toxins at the World Trade Center site led to his health problems.

Feal said yesterday that he was at Quibell's bedside when he died. The two had a final, full conversation on Friday. The movie, which took two months to make, didn't come up during that talk. They focused on family: Quibell's four children and fiancee, Theresa Galoppe.

"He knew he was dying," Feal said. "He just said please make sure Theresa and the children are taken care of. He died a hero. He didn't complain. He just wanted to make sure everyone is taken care of when he was gone."

Kenny Porpora contributed to this story.

Gold9472

09-03-2008, 08:31 AM

Lasting Effects of 9/11

http://www.justicenewsflash.com/2008/09/03/lasting-effects-of-911/

Jana Simard Legal Reporter
September 3, 2008

New York City, New York (JusticeNewsFlash.com – News report) – In the wake of the events of September 11, 2001, citizens of New York bonded together and formed huge volunteer cleanup efforts for their beloved city. One dedicated volunteer was a former state correction officer – 54 year-old - Gregory Quibell of North Babylon, Long Island. Quibell devoted 242 hours at the Ground Zero site between September 12 and November 22, 2001, according to state Correction Department records. After the inhumane terror attacks, Quibell worked night and day to shuttle firefighters to and from the World Trade Center, not knowing that toxins in the air continually contaminated his lungs. He was soon diagnosed with leukemia and pulmonary fibrosis and sadly passed away.

After Quibell’s death, a documentary called “Save the Brave” was filmed, focusing on the stories of service men and women such as ex-FDNY Chief Jim Riches, EMT Charlie Giles and Firefighter John McNamara and their commitment to our nation. The documentary is meant to grab the attention of Congress members who recently opposed legislation providing more comprehensive health care funding for sick 9/11 workers. Those who lead the support of this legislation are Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, Congressman Jerrold Nadler, and Congressman Vito Fossella. They introduced the Maloney-Nadler-Fossella 9/11 Health & Compensation Act to the US Congress (H.R. 3543; updated version H.R. 6594). Also known as the ‘James Zadroga bill’, and if passed, this act would ensure:

That every person exposed to the toxins of Ground Zero has a right to be medically monitored.
That every person who is sick as a result of exposure has a right to treatment.
That care is expanded to the entire exposed community, including residents, area workers, students, and the thousands of people who came from across the country in response to the 9/11 attacks.
That the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund would be reopened and expanded to provide further compensation for economic loss and damages.
Continued funding and support of the ‘Centers of Excellence’ (the FDNY, Mt. Sinai Hospital, Belleview Hospital, Queens College, SUNY Stony Brook and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey) which currently provide monitoring, support and care to First Responders.
The establishment of a Research and Support program by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services for the diagnosis and treatment of WTC-related conditions and diseases. Maloney and supporters hope that this passes by the seventh anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

The Quibell family is not alone in their sufferings, as many rescue volunteers have contracted chronic bronchial diseases, mesothelioma, leukemia and other cancers and diseases. Hundreds of First Responders and New Yorkers have already died; an estimated 70% of the 40,000-plus First Responders have declared illnesses and it is estimated that a further 300,000 New Yorkers will become seriously ill in the future. “I honestly believe that the number of people who died on 9/11 will be far eclipsed by the number of people who will die directly because of their exposure at Ground Zero.” - Vincent Forras was a volunteer firefighter who worked on the pile for three weeks, and became sick immediately. We must urge our lawmakers to fight for the passing of such bills as the James Zadroga bill, the lives of our loved ones are in their hands.

Gold9472

09-20-2008, 10:25 AM

Local band raises $500 for 9/11 rescue workers at concert

http://www.bristolpress.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=20130148&BRD=1643&PAG=461&dept_id=665528&rfi=6

By AKINTUNDE SOGUNRO, Special to The Press
09/19/2008

FARMINGTON - A benefit at the Zen Bar raised about $500 for 9/11 rescue workers and their families, said members of the band Pyramis, which organized the event.

The amount "on its face isn't much, but it is something," songwriter and guitarist Matt Pipke said on the band's Web site. "And we were able to rally our community and raise awareness to the plight of the rescue workers."

The Bristol five-member band - self-described as a "new-school blend of AC/DC and Pink Floyd" - brought together other hard-rocking friends and some acoustic performers to round out the night, asking for a $10 donation for the Ground Zero Rescue Workers Relief Fund.

"We're focused on the families of those who came to ground zero, the heroes who didn't think of themselves to help strangers," Pipke said. "They are the true superheroes of our time. It's a terrible thing when the very insurance companies you entrusted to be your safety net in such health tragedies such as these turn their back on you, and my heart just goes out for these struggling families."

Some rescue workers who say they became ill from the time they spent at ground zero are suing the Federal Emergency Management Agency's congressionally mandated WTC Captive Insurance Co. fund for refusing to release money for their health care, lost salary and pain and suffering.

"The mantra of the day was to never forget," Pipke said of Sept. 11, 2001, when terrorists struck New York City and the Pentagon. "But I'm sorry to say that times have changed."

Pipke and longtime friend Gary Bell founded the band Weathered Faces in 1997. Over 11 years, members moved and the group's lineup changed. In 2003, Pipke finally reformed the band as Pyramis. The band specializes in hard rock and political lyrics and among its notable performances have been a 2004 Freedom Of Speech event at the French Club in Bristol and competing in the Emergenza battle of the bands in Hartford this summer. The band took high honors.

The group has always had a solid vision and purpose behind their music, said Pipke, who has traveled to ground zero several times to pay tribute to the victims and rescue workers.

In 2003 he decided to transform his sympathy into a database of 9/11 facts linked to from his band's Web site, pyramis.tv. "Lumper's Page" is the Pyramis founder's collection of AP news Reports and Fox News clips on the status of those who thought their 9/11 afflictions would be eased by the government.

Pyramis members thanked those who helped put on the benefit, starting with Zen Bar, a Farmington Avenue night spot that boasts of its martinis, fine wine and "New York style" atmosphere, as well as its karaoke nights and Salsa Sundays.

Sir Speedy in Bristol printed tickets and posters, and DragonsWing Entertainment brought in As I Lay Awake in Ruin, a Hartford punk-pop band that "had played Boston the night before and were exhausted, but still put on a heck of a show," Pipke said.

Earlier in the event were the band Vision and performer Jeff Hart.

Gold9472

09-29-2008, 07:21 PM

Congress Ends 9/11 Workers' Health Care Bill

http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/86428/congress-ends-9-11-workers--health-care-bill/Default.aspx

Video
Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dO89b82Cspg) (GooTube)

By: NY1 News
09/29/2008 10:14 AM

Congress has abandoned legislation to provide billions of dollars in health care for September 11th recovery workers.

The program would have provided long term care for workers who were at the World Trade Center on or shortly after September 11, 2001 at an estimated cost of at least $5 billion.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg strongly objected to a part of the bill that would have forced the city to pay for 10 percent of the program, saying it would place an undue burden on city taxpayers.

In addition, the legislation would have reopened the federal September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, adding around $6 billion to the plan.

The legislation had the backing of several New York congressmen but was overshadowed by negotiations surrounding the financial bailout.

Gold9472

09-30-2008, 10:55 PM

9/11 health bill opposed by NY mayor is shelved

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/newyork/ny-bc-ny--sept11-health0928sep28,0,5355734.story

By DEVLIN BARRETT | Associated Press Writer
September 28, 2008

WASHINGTON - Congress has shelved a $10.9 billion bill to provide health care for ground zero workers, partly due to opposition from New York City officials.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg objected to a provision in the bill that would have required the city to pay 10 percent of the cost of a long-term program providing health care to those sick from working amid the toxic World Trade Center debris in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.

The total cost of the 10-year health program was to be $5.1 billion. The city's share was to be $500 million.

The bill also would have reopened the Sept. 11 victim compensation fund with an estimated $6 billion for those who became sick after working amid the debris.

New York City lawmakers had hoped to vote on the package over the weekend, but they ran out of time and support amid intense congressional negotiations over a $700 billion financial bailout package and the resistance from city officials.

Bloomberg spokesman Jason Post said the Sept. 11 health bill that was headed for a vote was "a step backward" from a bill introduced in July because "it put an undue burden on city taxpayers."

Under the proposed measure, which had been the subject of negotiations as late as Sunday afternoon, the city would have paid $500 million over the first 10 years and additional costs in the following years.

"That is nearly five times what the city now pays each year" for its Sept. 11 program, Post said.

Denis Hughes, president of the New York state AFL-CIO, blamed "shortsighted" thinking by City Hall.

"Part of it was the work on the bailout, but what really sunk this was the mayor's opposition," Hughes said. "I think they miscalculated."

He said he was "disappointed."

Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-Manhattan, one of the authors of the original version of the bill, thanked House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for her work in recent days on the bill.

"I'm only sorry that the city did not agree that a $10.9 billion federal commitment to New York City to help those injured by the toxins at ground zero should have been passed," Maloney said in a statement.

Gold9472

10-23-2008, 01:24 PM

Many New York 9/11 Workers, Residents Still Sick

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/green/Many_New_York_9_11_Workers__Residents_Still_Sick.h tml

9/4/2008

NEW YORK, New York, September 4, 2008 (ENS) - Nearly seven years after the terrorist attacks that demolished the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, many people exposed to the dust, smoke and chemical fumes released into the environment by the airplane strikes on the twin towers continue to experience illnesses.

Rescue and recovery workers, residents of Lower Manhattan, and area workers are still suffering physical and mental health problems related to 9/11 exposure, according to the first report of the WTC Medical Working Group, released today by Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

After reviewing more than 100 scientific articles published since 2001, the group of physicians and researchers found that thousands of people have been treated for physical and mental health problems. But more people still need medical help, so the mayor today launched a citywide publicity campaign to promote awareness of medical and mental health treatment options for those who are still suffering.

"We have answered the call for help from those who have suffered health problems as a result of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack," said Mayor Bloomberg. "We're helping people heal, both physically and emotionally, and we will continue to reach out to those in need."

In the aftermath of 9/11, respiratory symptoms were common among people who breathed in the contaminants released by the collapse of the World Trade Center, the WTC Medical Working Group reports.

Respiratory symptoms have subsided over time for many, but have persisted for some including firefighters, 25 percent of whom had symptoms two to four years after the event. Lung function also has declined among some workers.

In surveys conducted two to three years after 9/11, rescue and recovery workers, Lower Manhattan residents and area workers developed new cases of asthma at two to three times the expected rate.

Studies on cancer risk or increased risk of death are underway, but the results are not yet available because of long latency periods of many potentially fatal diseases.

The new $5 million citywide advertising and grassroots marketing campaign will debut on subways, print, radio, and television next week. The campaign, which will run in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Polish, urges the public to seek care for 9/11-related health problems with its tagline, "Lived There? Worked There? You Deserve Care."

The campaign directs New Yorkers to the WTC Environmental Health Center or to dial 311 for help.

"Many New Yorkers are suffering from wheezing, shortness of breath, stomach and other medical or emotional problems related to their 9/11 exposure and its aftermath. Yet too many don't connect their continuing health problems to 9/11 or believe that help is only available to WTC rescue and recovery workers," said Alan Aviles, who heads the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation.

"This awareness campaign - devised collaboratively with concerned community organizations - has been designed to get people to the health care they need," Aviles said. "

"We hope it will resonate deeply with those potentially affected - families who lived and stayed in their downtown homes, young people who went to school in the area, local business owners who kept their shops open, local office workers who commute from many parts of the city and the region, clean-up workers who cleared dust from nearby offices, and those who still struggle with the psychological and emotional trauma of losing a loved one or witnessing the horrific devastation," he said.

"The World Trade Center Medical Working Group Report represents remarkable consensus among scientists, doctors, and experts on what the research tells us about 9/11 health problems," said Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs, who co-chaired the group. "Our objective review will inform the city's ongoing commitment to targeting resources and research where they are needed and ensure that those affected receive the treatment they deserve."

Mayor Bloomberg is appealing to the federal government for more funding to support the research and treatment already underway."We will keep fighting for the support these critically important programs deserve," he said.

The city has secured more than $108 million from Congress for fiscal year 2008, including first time funding for community members and area workers suffering from 9/11 health problems.

"This was gained with crucial support from members of the New York delegation, labor leaders, members of the community, and local health and environmental organizations," the mayor said.

City actions also prompted the release of $30 million of these funds from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide services for residents, workers and students.

"The city has not waited to get treatment to those who are sick because of the 9/11 attacks, but the federal government must make the long-term investments necessary to ensure that we can continue to conduct vital research and treat those who are sick or who could become sick," said Deputy Mayor Edward Skyler. "To accomplish that, Congress must pass the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2008."

The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2008 would provide a consistent funding stream for 9/11-related treatment and the re-opening of the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

The City of New York has committed $100 million in funds over five years for the 9/11-related health agenda.

The mayor said today that all 15 of the recommendations laid out in the city's 2007 report, "Addressing the Health Impacts of 9/11" have been completed or are underway. Among those efforts:

Treatment services have been expanded at Bellevue Hospital, Elmhurst Hospital Center and Gouverneur Healthcare Services, where more than 2,800 New Yorkers have been treated for 9/11-related problems.

More than 1,000 New Yorkers have been enrolled in a new financial reimbursement program for people receiving 9/11-related mental health services.

Medical treatment guidelines for treating people exposed to 9/11 contaminants have been distributed to 40,000 health professionals, and health information has been sent regularly to more than 5,000 residents and city employees.

A comprehensive website for 9/11 health information and service listings has been established, and the site has had more than 300,000 visits to date.

"Help is available for people still suffering," said New York City Health Commissioner Dr. Tom Frieden, co-chair of the World Trade Center Medical Working Group.

"Any New Yorker can call 311 or visit the 9/11 health website at www.nyc.gov (http://www.nyc.gov) to find information about treatment for a physical ailment or a mental health problem, he said. "Both post traumatic stress disorder and respiratory conditions are still common among those directly exposed. Treatment can help, so please seek care if you're suffering."

Gold9472

10-26-2008, 12:52 AM

9/11 First Responders Visit Buckhannon

http://www.wtrf.com/story.cfm?func=viewstory&storyid=45971

BUCKHANNON -- Some 9/11 first responders visited Buckhannon-Upshur High School Friday morning.

Demolitions expert John Feal was injured while working at Ground Zero.

Feal has since formed the FealGood foundation to educate people people about the health effects on 9/11 first responders, and to provide financial support to sick 9-11 rescue and recovery workers.

Students say Feal's presentation was educational and inspiring.

"I don't know much about 9/11 and I'd like to learn more about what they went through and I think it's kind of cool that they came to our school," says Mariah Stocker, a freshman at Buckhannon-Upshur High School.

Feal and five other 9/11 first responders are also presenting at the First United Methodist Church in Buckhannon Friday at 6:30.

Gold9472

10-26-2008, 07:50 PM

Sept. 11 First Responders to Visit W.Va. School

http://wvde.state.wv.us/news/1780/

Posted: October 21, 2008

BUCKHANNON, W.Va. – John Feal, founding president of the FealGood Foundation and a demolition expert who worked at Ground Zero following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, will bring his message to Upshur County students and residents on Friday, Oct. 24. Feal and up to seven other first responders will meet with students at Buchannon Upshur High School beginning at 8:30 a.m. The group will meet with the community later in the day.

Feal, like 70 percent of 9/11 workers, suffers from post-9/11 illnesses. One of his feet had to be amputated after being crushed by an eight-ton steel beam. He also suffers from a respiratory syndrome called World Trade Center Cough and posttraumatic stress disorder.

Feal agreed to visit West Virginia after some Buckhannon-Upshur High School students contacted him via e-mail after watching a documentary in health educator Mateal Poling’s class. The documentary, Save the Brave, chronicles the daily struggles of 9/11 Ground Zero workers in the seven years since the attacks. Greg Quibell, one of the men featured, died of his injuries the day before the film’s premiere in New York.

“You have no idea how excited they were when Feal replied -- me too,” Poling said. “It is hard to imagine that these kids were only first and second graders on 9/11, but thanks to Feal’s efforts, our students are starting to have a better understanding of the profound effects of that day.”

Feal said he is “humbled and honored to meet such amazing Americans.”

“They are a reflection of the teacher who has taught them well,” Feal said. “Your resolve and testament is what makes great future leaders of this country. We look forward to coming to the great state of West Virginia to share our stories and tell of the thousands that need our help.”

The FealGood Foundation’s primary mission, according to its Web site “is to spread awareness and educate the public about the catastrophic health effects on 9/11 first responders, as well as to provide assistance to relieve these great heroes of the financial burdens placed on them over the last five years.” The foundation also works to create a network of advocacy on 9/11 healthcare issues.

For more information, contact Mateal Poling or Mikaela Poling at (304) 472-2155 or by e-mail at luikart2@gmail.com. The FealGood Foundation’s Web site is http://www.fealgoodfoundation.com.

Gold9472

11-18-2008, 10:08 AM

Logistics Health blames feds for delays in aid to 9/11 responders

http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/314807

11/18/2008

LA CROSSE — Officials with Logistics Health Inc. on Monday blamed the federal government for delays in implementing a program to provide health care for responders to the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Company officials, including former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson, responded angrily Monday to a Wisconsin State Journal story that raised questions about Logistics Health's performance on an $11 million one-year contract with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an agency that Thompson once headed.

The story quoted critics as saying that reimbursement for health-care costs and regular medical monitoring for more than 4,000 people enrolled in the program had lagged for months after the La Crosse-based company began handling the contract in July. Thompson, who is president of LHI, and other company officials had declined to talk about the contract before the story was published. It calls for LHI to provide health care and regular health monitoring exams to ailing 9/11 responders who live outside the New York City area.

In interviews with the State Journal and the La Crosse Tribune, Thompson and LHI officials insisted they were ready to care for the ailing responders "immediately" but that NIOSH had thrown up roadblocks. The company had declined to comment about the contract prior to the story's publication, saying a provision in the pact prohibited them from speaking to the press. However, NIOSH spokesman Fred Blosser provided the contract language, which required that the company get NIOSH approval before releasing any statistical information about the program.

Logistics Health chairman and CEO Don Weber said the company has decided to speak out. "I'm sick of being punched around and not being able to come back and say, 'Wait a minute.' Working with NIOSH has been very difficult. ... It's time we're taking a stand."

Weber and Thompson both insisted that Thompson had nothing to do with the federal contract being awarded to LHI. Thompson also chalked up delays in the 9/11 responder contract to NIOSH, not Logistics Health.

"NIOSH told us not to send out any letters (to enroll responders)," Thompson said. "That's what got screwed up — not LHI. They (NIOSH) are an agency that has serious problems."

Blosser said he's aware of a one-month delay that occurred after his agency asked LHI which consent form it planned to send out to responders.

"In August, our staff contacted LHI to say that we wanted to make sure that the enrollment form that LHI proposed to include in the information packet for responders was the correct and appropriate form for the purpose. Subsequently we learned that LHI had held off sending the packets after getting that message," Blosser said. "The packets then went out. The time lapsed was about one month."

LHI said it also ran into problems getting accurate contact information for the responders. So far, 3,019 of the 4,200 have been reached, officials said.

"A lot of the information was inaccurate," Weber said. "No address, no phone number."

Thompson also said once patients were enrolled, the company worked quickly to respond to their medical needs. He called LHI the "best in the business" at providing health care to large targeted populations. He called coverage of the contract delays "unfair."

Gold9472

11-23-2008, 03:14 AM

Fassel Foundation donates $250K to 9/11 groups

http://blogs.nfl.com/2008/11/20/fassel-foundation-donates-250k-to-911-groups/

11/21/2008

Jim Fassel watched from the roof of Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey as the Twin Towers in lower Manhattan collapsed in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Fassel, who was head coach of the Giants in 2001, and the team visited the site a week later to support the first responders.

“When I walked through the rubble of Ground Zero,” Fassel said. “I pledged that I’d never forget the events of the day and I’d do what I could to help the people affected by it.”

This week, Fassel — now an NFL analyst for Westwood One Radio and ESPN — continued to follow up on his pledge. His Jim Fassel Foundation, which was established in 2002 and has raised more than $1.1 million, contributed $250,000 to five organizations representing first responders, health providers and 9/11-related charities. The donation, the Fassel Foundation’s largest one-time contribution to date, was made at the World Trade Center Tribute Center in lower Manhattan.

“We have achieved an important milestone, surpassing $1 million in funds raised,” Fassel said. “After seven years, many may not realize that the 9/11 tragedy continues to cause considerable pain, hardship and illness, which is why it is so essential that we find ways to keep the needs of those affected in the public eye because they will continue to require our support for some time.”

Gold9472

12-12-2008, 09:56 AM

New health secretary Daschle must do the right thing for sick 9/11 responders

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2008/12/12/2008-12-12_new_health_secretary_daschle_must_do_the.html

Friday, December 12th 2008, 4:00 AM

In a noteworthy coincidence, President-elect Barack Obama announced his nominee for Health and Human Services secretary the day after a judge set the first trial date for lawsuits by sickened 9/11 rescue and recovery workers.

The juxtaposition was a reminder of how miserably the Bush administration failed men and women who became ill because they responded to Ground Zero. It is a national shame that the sick still fight for medical care and are forced through the wringer of the courts to pursue compensation.

Those are sorry legacies of President Bush and his unrepentantly stonewalling man at HHS, Michael Leavitt. The Obama team, soon to be led by Tom Daschle, must do far better. He must be the secretary who remembers the Forgotten Victims of 9/11.

New York's congressional delegation, including Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerry Nadler, Pete King and the now-disgraced Vito Fossella, came within a hair of getting an $11 billion treatment and compensation plan to a vote in the House in September.

The measure was flawed in that it would have forced the city to bear an outsized share of the burden. But its foundations were sound. They included establishing a nationwide program for monitoring and treating workers and reopening the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

The fund provided payments to survivors of people killed on 9/11 as well as to people injured that day. It closed before thousands of responders developed symptoms of lung damage and other illnesses.

Reopening the fund would eliminate the time-consuming and hugely expensive process of working potentially 10,000 lawsuits through federal court - while unjustly threatening to bankrupt the contractors who executed the post-9/11 cleanup.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein set the first trials for 2010. These suits should not have been necessary. And Daschle should take the lead in making sure there is no reason to carry them out.

If the incoming secretary needs a tutorial on the issues, he need only look to the most senior member of the cabinet of which he will be a part - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who began fighting for the rescue and recovery workers while Ground Zero was a pile of twisted steel.

Let the battle now be won.

Gold9472

12-16-2008, 09:48 AM

Clinic for 9/11 responders opens
West Brighton facility run by Richmond University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Medical Center

http://www.silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/1229432419241540.xml&coll=1

By JUDY L. RANDALL
ADVANCE STAFF WRITER
Tuesday, December 16, 2008

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A clinic for World Trade Center first-responders was formally opened in West Brighton yesterday, a joint venture between Richmond University Medical Center and Mount Sinai Medical Center, Manhattan, where some 1,400 Staten Islanders already have sought treatment for illnesses related to exposure to toxins and depression.

Proponents of the facility here -- including two Manhattan members of Congress instrumental in its funding -- highlighted the importance of Island residents being able to seek a compatible array of comprehensive services in their home borough.

Medical care, along with a mental health component, and social work services, including benefits information, will be offered five days a week in the 4,200-square-foot facility at 690 Castleton Ave., across the street from RUMC.

Mount Sinai's Dr. Jacqueline Moline, who oversees WTC clinic services, said there are likely an additional 700 Staten Island World Trade Center first-responders who could benefit from treatment.

All they need to do is call 1-888-702-0630.

She said the services are free and confidential.

Dr. Moline said patients have sought treatment for respiratory ailments, including sinus trouble, asthma and heartburn, that have caused a reduction in their physical abilities. They have also received help with depression, including post traumatic stress disorder.

Dr. Moline said some $300 million in funding for services in four clinics throughout the city is from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

But she called maintaining funding levels "a constant challenge," and Democratic Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler charged yesterday that the Bush administration continues to thwart the flow of dollars.

The cost to open and maintain the clinic here, which has a one-year lease, could not be immediately learned from hospital officials.

Among those on hand to lend support were Councilman Michael McMahon (D-North Shore), the congressman-elect, and Assemblyman Michael Cusick (D-Mid-Island).

Said McMahon: "This brings a neighborhood perspective to the national fight for further funding."

Judy L. Randall is a news reporter for the Advance. She may be reached at randall@siadvance.com.

Gold9472

01-05-2009, 02:33 PM

9/11 Still Producing FDNY Casualties

http://cms.firehouse.com/web/online/911/911-Still-Producing-FDNY-Casualties/41$62175

1/5/2009

John Schroeder lost everything on 9/11 - and now it's cost him his job as well.

As a hose man for Engine Co. 10, Schroeder was one of the first firefighters to respond to both the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, reaching the 23rd floor of the north tower during the latter catastrophe.

"I saw more people die that day than anyone can imagine," he told The Post.

Afterward, he struggled to cope with the staggering loss of 55 friends and colleagues. "I turned to the drink, the whole department did," he said.

Now Schroeder, 49, is one of several scarred firefighters fighting to keep their pensions because of failed drug tests, caught between the sympathy of their colleagues and the zero-tolerance policy of the Fire Department.

Schroeder tested positive for cocaine during a random FDNY drug sweep on Oct. 24, 2004. He denies using cocaine and claims he's been sober for more than a year. His lawyers argue he's a victim of a flawed test.

The department moved to fire Schroeder through a disciplinary hearing. In a highly unusual ruling, an administrative-law judge in August 2007 recommended that the 18-year veteran be allowed to retire with dignity.

Judge Kevin Casey didn't comment on the drug-test results but suggested the FDNY allow the decorated firefighter to complete his application for a disability pension. That way, Casey said, Schroeder, who suffers from lung disease that he believes came from breathing toxic Ground Zero air, could keep his health benefits.

At almost the same time, another 9/11 firefighter, Thomas Kelly, was undergoing a similar trial. Kelly admitted after a failed drug test that he had used cocaine. He argued that dismissal and loss of his pension and benefits was too harsh a penalty. But the FDNY still fired him.

Kelly asked the Appellate Division to review Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta's decision. In November, the court upheld Scoppetta's firing of Kelly.

Three weeks later, Schroeder, who had remained on modified duty while fighting his case, was also fired.

"They all just walked by me like I was a display in a zoo," he said, referring to his last years at the FDNY.

FDNY spokesman Frank Gribbon said the department's zero-tolerance policy for drug-test failures is "applied equally and consistently in all cases," but that firefighters who come forward for counseling on their own accord don't face the threat of job loss or punishment.

In all, 29 firefighters have failed drug tests since the random screenings were initiated in 2003. The policy came after a collision of two fire rigs; one of the firefighter drivers tested positive for cocaine.

At least four of those failed tests were tied to firefighters suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder due to their work on or shortly after 9/11, the firefighters union says.

That list includes firefighter Joseph Maresca, who was caught buying cocaine from an undercover cop near Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, with his 6-year-old daughter in his car.

An administrative law judge just ruled that Maresca also should be allowed to retire with pension and health benefits intact. His case is still pending before the FDNY.

Department doctors have diagnosed Schroeder with post-traumatic stress disorder and severe lung damage.

"I can't breathe," he said. "It's not getting easier."

But now Schroeder is minus pension and medical benefits.

On 9/11, he stopped on the 23rd floor of the north tower to help a colleague from Engine Co. 5 who had suffered a heart attack.

"That morning, my life was complete," he said. "Within a second, we looked up and everything was suddenly out of control."

As the south tower came crashing down, he began to rush out. But he got trapped for a while because of a collapsed stairwell, escaping the north tower moments before it collapsed.

He spent the following weeks toiling on "the pile," sifting through debris, finding body parts. He was temporarily placed on light duty and assigned to the FDNY's counseling unit after he discovered the remains of a friend.

Those days continually replay in his head.

"One day I'd like to wake up and not know what it's like to have 9/11 hitting me in the face like a Muhammad Ali left hook," he said.

Schroeder noted that he could have retired after 9/11 but stayed on to help train new firefighters.

But Schroeder, whose father was also a firefighter, now regrets that decision.

"It's an embarrassment that I was ever a fireman," he said.

Gold9472

01-16-2009, 06:14 PM

NYC adds man's cancer death to 9/11 victims' toll

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gedchpIl6oM7F3AwCEyXaLDuYMzgD95OEC881

1/16/2009

NEW YORK (AP) — A New York City man who died of lymphoma and lung disease three months ago has been added to the Sept. 11 death toll.

The city medical examiner's office says 45-year-old Leon Heyward's death was caused by breathing in the toxic dust cloud caused by the collapse of the World Trade Center towers.

The medical examiner says Heyward died Oct. 13 of lymphoma, complicated by the lung disease sarcoidosis (sahr-koy-DOH'-sis.)

M.E. spokesman Ellen Borakove says Heyward was near the towers when they collapsed. She didn't know when he had become ill.

In 2007, the office added the name of a woman who died after the 2001 attacks to the death toll because of her exposure to toxic dust. The death toll from the trade center attacks now stands at 2,752.

Gold9472

02-05-2009, 09:20 AM

Study: 9/11 lung problems persist years later

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090205/ap_on_re_us/attacks_health

2/5/2009

NEW YORK – Researchers tracking Sept. 11 responders who became ill after working at the World Trade Center site found many had lung problems years later in a study the authors said proves persistent illness in people exposed to toxic dust caused by the twin towers' collapse.

The study by the Mount Sinai Medical Center's medical monitoring program examined more than 3,000 responders between 2004 and 2007, repeating exams conducted between the middle of 2002 and 2004.

Slightly more than 24 percent of the patients had abnormal lung function, the study found. In the earlier examinations, about 28 percent of the patients had similar results.

"We know people we are following are still sick. It's confirming what we've been seeing clinically," said Dr. Jacqueline M. Moline, who treats ailing responders and co-authored the study.

Experts have struggled since the 2001 attacks to find standards to define post-Sept. 11 illness and the time it would take to develop. The city's medical examiner recently added to the official victims' list a man who died in October of cancer and lung disease, citing his exposure to the dust cloud that enveloped the city when the 110-story towers collapsed.

Mount Sinai's program has treated more than 26,000 people who were at the site or worked there in the days after Sept. 11. The study's authors noted that participants asked to be enrolled in the program and may have more health problems than others who were exposed but didn't enroll.

But Norman H. Edelman, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association, said the study is "probably an important finding" of long-term post-Sept. 11 illness.

"The most reasonable explanation is that there's a subset of people who for whatever reason were more sensitive to the stuff that was inhaled," Edelman said.

The researchers tracked 3,160 people who took followup exams between September 2004 and December 2007; all had previous exams at least 18 months earlier.

The study appears in Thursday's editions of CHEST, a journal published by the American College of Chest Physicians.

Gold9472

02-05-2009, 09:22 AM

Study shows WTC link to lung woes

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/02/05/2009-02-05_study_shows_wtc_link_to_lung_woes.html

BY Leo Standora
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Thursday, February 5th 2009, 5:03 AM

Many Sept. 11 first responders - most of them cops, firemen and construction workers who took ill after working at Ground Zero - suffered lung problems more than five years later, according to a new study.

Experts say findings by Mount Sinai Medical Center's medical monitoring program prove those exposed to toxic dust in the twin towers' collapse suffer persistent illnesses, ranging from asthma to reactive airway disease and shortness of breath.

The study could help experts who have long been struggling to set standards for defining a post-Sept. 11 illness and how long it takes to develop.

The monitoring program examined more than 3,160 WTC responders between 2004 and 2007, repeating exams conducted between the middle of 2002 and 2004.

Slightly more than 24% of those examined had abnormal lung function, the study found.

In the earlier examinations, about 28% of the patients had had similar results.

"We know people we are following are still sick. It's confirming what we've been seeing clinically," said Dr. Jacqueline Moline, who treats ailing responders and is a co-author of the study.

The growing medical fallout from the WTC attacks was the focus of the Daily News Editorial Board's groundbreaking editorial series, "9/11: The Forgotten Victims," that won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007.

As a result of the series, the federal Department of Health and Human Services released $75 million to monitor and provide health care to 9/11 volunteers - the first federal funds dedicated explicitly to 9/11 health problems.

Then-Gov. George Pataki later signed a bill to provide line-of-duty death benefits to responders' families, Mayor Bloomberg committed more than $37 million to monitor and treat victims, and Congress filed legislation seeking an additional $1.9 billion over five years.

Mount Sinai's program has treated more than 26,000 people who were at the site or worked there in the days after Sept. 11.

The study's authors note that the participants all asked to be enrolled in the program and may be more symptomatic than others who were exposed but didn't enroll.

Still, Norman Edelman, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association, said the study is "probably an important finding" of long-term post-Sept. 11 illness.

"The most reasonable explanation is that there's a subset of people who, for whatever reason, were more sensitive to the stuff that was inhaled," Edelman said.

Gold9472

02-06-2009, 09:59 AM

Lung Problems Persist for 9/11 Responders
Nearly a quarter still have breathing problems, study finds

http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/02/05/lung-problems-persist-for-911-responders.html

By Randy Dotinga
Posted February 5, 2009

THURSDAY, Feb. 5 (HealthDay News) -- Almost a quarter of a sample of people exposed to toxic dust after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attack in New York City still suffer from diminished lung capacity, a new study finds.

The rate of problems is much higher than normal, about 2.5 times more than would be expected in people who smoke, said study co-author Dr. Jacqueline Moline, director of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program Clinical Center.

"These tests confirm what we've seen clinically: People are sick, they're short of breath," Moline said. "They used to run miles a day, now they can barely run the length of a football field."

But it's not clear what all of this means for their health in the long term, the researchers said.

The study findings appear in the February issue of the journal Chest.

Experts estimate that about 40,000 people, including fire and rescue workers, were exposed to noxious pollution in the wake of the attack on the World Trade Center.

Between 2004 and 2007, researchers gave breath tests to 3,160 9/11 workers and volunteers who had taken part in an earlier round of tests from 2002 to 2004.

About a quarter of those tested still have limited lung capacity and lung function, Moline said. "The most common finding we see is that people aren't able to take in as deep of a breath as you'd expect, and some can't push it out as much."

The normal rate of lung capacity problems for a similar group of people would be five percent for non-smokers and 10 percent for smokers, she noted.

"These are problems we're seeing five or six or seven years after the towers fell," Moline said. "Many of these folks are going to have long-term problems, and their lung function won't return to normal."

She said that researchers may never know what component of the toxic brew of 9/11 dust and smoke hurt the lungs of those who responded to the emergency.

Workers at the site reported cases of a signature "World Trade Center cough" and many said they suffered from such symptoms as itchy eyes and runny noses, even after the site cleanup ended in 2006.

The news is not all bad, however. Medication and other treatment could help those who were exposed, Moline said.

Dr. Norman Edelman, chief medical officer of the American Lung Association, said that researchers still need to figure out what comes next for those exposed to the pollution.

"We don't know what it means for future health so we must, as the authors suggest, continue to follow them," he said.

Research released in September by the New York City health department looked at a wide range of people exposed to the World Trade Center disaster, including nearby residents and commuters. Authors of that study estimated that more than 400,000 people were exposed to the disaster. An estimated 35,000 to 70,000 of them developed post-traumatic stress disorder, and 3,800 to 12,600 people developed asthma as a result.

Gold9472

02-07-2009, 11:22 AM

Congress must finally fulfill America's obligation to the forgotten victims of September 11th

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/02/07/2009-02-07_congress_must_finally_fulfill_americas_o.html

Saturday, February 7th 2009, 4:00 AM

A new study by researchers at Mount Sinai Medical Center confirms the terrible truth about the long-term damage suffered by many rescue and recovery workers who responded to the World Trade Center.

The serious ill effects caused by breathing the toxic cloud that draped The Pile are, to this day, persistent and chronic among thousands of brave men and women who pitched in heroically after the terror attack.

Tests on more than 3,160 cops, construction workers and others found that more than 24% showed abnormal lung function between 2004 and 2007, down only slightly from the 28% who exhibited reduced lung function in similar examinations from 2002 to 2004.

The findings reinforce a second truth: Congress must find the will and the wherewithal to provide health care, monitoring and compensation to all those who remain sickened by exposure to WTC dust.

As it happened, New York Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerry Nadler, Pete King and Michael McMahon last week reintroduced legislation to do just that. The same bill died without action last fall, despite the welcome support of Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The measure would provide $10.9 billion over 10 years to address a health crisis that extends into every state and nearly every congressional district because so many Americans rushed to New York to give aid.

The bill would provide medical care for lung, gastrointestinal and other diseases caused by WTC exposure; track the health of patients over time, and, importantly, reopen the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund as a necessary alternative to litigation.

For more than seven years, Congress and the departed Bush administration refused to uphold America's obligation to the 9/11 brigade. Among the stumbling blocks is the wrongheaded notion that city taxpayers must shoulder a share of the expense.

Maloney and her colleagues have attempted to sell the legislation by including a provision that would require the city to foot a whopping $500 million of the costs. Mayor Bloomberg has rightly balked.

City Hall is already paying for a set of 9/11 health programs. And, lest anyone miss the point, New York's budget is so busted that the mayor has proposed raising taxes amid serious talk of laying off thousands of public workers.

Washington must accept its responsibility. The U.S. was attacked on 9/11; New York City just happened to be the primary target. The ill and injured went to the service of their country, and their country owes them.

We have been blessed that America has been spared a second major attack. But there is no doubt terrorists are out there plotting. Should, God forbid, they succeed, would-be responders should not have to worry about being abandoned by the government. Right now, that's the horrible lesson they can draw.

Gold9472

02-07-2009, 11:26 AM

It's important to remember who forgot them because it wasn't us.

Gold9472

02-11-2009, 04:28 PM

Bill Aiding 9/11 First Responders Has Both Parties' Support

http://www.qgazette.com/news/2009/0211/features/007.html

BY JOHN TOSCANO
2/11/2009

A new bill has been introduced in Congress to deal with the health crisis that resulted from the aftermath of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

As part of a continuing effort by Congressmember Carolyn Maloney, the new 9/11 Health and Compensation Act has bipartisan support and could also have the backing of President Barack Obama, who signaled his strong support for the 9/11 cleanup victims during his campaign last year.

Major support for the bill came last Thursday when Mount Sinai Medical Center in Manhattan issued a report showing that more than 24 percent of 3,160 responders to the 9/11 attack and who are participating in a long-term health study continue to have abnormal lung function even seven years after the terrorist attack, according to Maloney and her colleague, Congressmember Jerrold Nadler (D- Manhattan).

Addressing herself to those in the Mount Sinai study, Maloney pointed out, "They are waiting for the care and compensation they deserve."

Maloney continued, "The Mount Sinai report shows yet again why we must pass the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act which demonstrates with stark clarity why we must act immediately to solve the health crisis caused by 9/11."

More than 400,000 people are believed to have been exposed to toxins from the WTC site, the lawmakers said. Nearly 16,000 responders and at least 2,700 community members are currently sick and receiving treatment. Although most of these people live in the New York-New Jersey area, at least 10,000 people who came from different parts of the U.S. to volunteer for the cleanup were also afflicted.

The ailing individuals include New York City firefighters and police officers, Emergency Medical Technician members, people from construction companies, cleanup personnel, local area residents and schoolchildren. Their illnesses include respiratory and gastrointestinal system ailments such as asthma, lung diseases, chronic cough and mental health conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the lawmakers said.

The new bill, titled H.R. 47, was introduced by Maloney (D- Queens/Manhattan), Nadler, and Congressmembers Michael McMahon (D- Staten Island) and Peter King (R- C, Long Island). It would provide medical monitoring and treatment for those who worked at Ground Zero, as well as compensation for economic losses due to illnesses or injuries caused by the 9/11 attacks, the lawmakers explained.

Maloney said the previous version of the legislation was ready to be considered by the House last fall, but because of the financial crisis and other factors, it had to be delayed. It is hoped that its chances of being successful will be aided by its bipartisan sponsorship and support.

Maloney stated, "Thousands lost their lives in the 9/11 attacks, but in the years that followed thousands more lost their health. This bill provides proper care to those who are suffering and demonstrates that America will not abandon its first responders and all those affected.

"I thank [House] Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi and my colleagues in the New York delegation for their dedication to fulfilling America's moral responsibility to care for those who were harmed by the terrorist attacks on our nation."

The reintroduced legislation would build on existing monitoring and treatment programs by delivering expert medical treatment for these unique exposures at [Mount Sinai] Centers of Excellence, Maloney said, and also provide research into WTC-related health conditions.

Gold9472

02-22-2009, 05:56 PM

9/11 health cases still months from trial

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/911-health-cases-still-months/story.aspx?guid={DE991A10-2E6F-4C29-96FA-30B2EA4637A5}&dist=msr_1

Last update: 12:36 p.m. EST Feb. 22, 2009

NEW YORK, Feb 22, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- The sickest workers claiming ailments caused by the cleanup of the World Trade Center will be the first to have their cases heard in court, a U.S. judge says.

The first 30 trials are to begin May 17, 2010, said U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein.

"Their cases deserved to be tried first, for if they were to prevail, they have the greatest need for a monetary recovery," said Hellerstein, who is overseeing 9,090 individual lawsuits by construction workers, firefighters, police and others claiming injuries from the rescue and cleanup of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Settlements or verdicts in the first 30 cases will point the way for hundreds of other plaintiffs to settle their cases without enduring years of legal delays, Hellerstein said.

The plaintiffs allege exposure to toxic materials caused their illnesses. They contend the city and World Trade Center contractors failed to protect them, the New York Post reported Sunday.

More than $200 million of the $1 billion allocated by Congress to cover the claims has been lost in bond investments or has gone to pay administrative overhead and legal costs, the Post reported.

Gold9472

02-24-2009, 09:31 AM

Judge Sets Date in 9/11 Health Lawsuits

http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/090222_Judge_Sets_Date_in_9_11_Health_Lawsuits

Created On: Sunday, 22 Feb 2009, 7:32 PM EST

MYFOXNY.COM - On September 11, thousands of emergency workers rushed to the World Trade Center.

Today, many of them could be sick as a result. Soon, they'll have the chance to make that case in court.

Manhattan federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the first of some 30 trials will convene in May. He believes settlements or jury verdicts reached in the first 30 cases will point the way for hundreds of others to settle without dragging them through the courts for years to come.

The plaintiffs, who include construction workers, firefighters and police, said they were not protected from the toxic smoke at ground zero.

They believe the recovery and clean up effort made them sick.

There are about 9,000 pending lawsuits related to 9/11 recovery.

Gold9472

02-25-2009, 08:47 AM

Bill contains $70 million for 9/11 health programs

http://www.silive.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/base/news-42/1235542748147050.xml&storylist=simetro

2/25/2009, 1:00 a.m. EST
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of Congress say a spending bill expected to come before the House includes $70 million in new funding for federal 9/11 health programs.

The funding is expected to cover the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program's expenses for this fiscal year. That's according to a statement from New York Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King, and Michael McMahon.

The new money would be combined with $112 million carried over from past years.

The bill could come before the House as early as Wednesday.

Gold9472

03-10-2009, 07:54 PM

Hey Washington D.C., Let's Get This Show On The Road!!!

Jon Gold
3/10/2009

"I was just in the hospital for 8 days with respiratory & coronary problems. Then I come out to find out that the insurance carrier decided at the last minute to appeal my award from workmans comp that was just given to me after waiting 7 1/2 years."

This was just told to me by 9/11 First Responder Charlie Giles. Charlie was an EMT that went into the North Tower to try and help people, and got caught when the building collapsed. He was pulled out of the rubble, and has had to deal with serious medical problems ever since.

Charlie is but one of thousands with similar problems. It has almost been 8 years since that horrid day, and for the most part, the 9/11 First Responders and the people of New York living around Ground Zero have been neglected. Neglected by those who were more than willing to use their images to sell two wars, take away our civil liberties, and practically destroy this country.

It is LONG past due that these individuals receive the help they so DESPERATELY need and deserve.

On February 4th, 2009, Reps. Maloney, Nadler, King, and McMahon reintroduced the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (http://www.911blogger.com/node/19278). Since that time, it has been sitting in limbo, just waiting to be voted on.

To our elected officials sitting in the House of Representatives. You could spend more money in Iraq or Afghanistan. You could spend more money on health care. You could spend more money bailing out the financial industry. You could do a lot of things, and in the past, you have shown us that when you want to, you can pass legislation faster than a speeding bullet.

I am asking you now to put all of those other things aside, and spend some money on what's right, and to do it NOW. Give them the help that they need. It is long past due.

Gold9472

03-12-2009, 01:24 PM

Local Hospital Checks Up On Sept. 11 Responders

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29627114/

3/12/2009

TAMPA - Like every first responder on Sept. 11, 2001, Ivan Castrillo breathed in the toxic air - a brew of jet fuel, asbestos, lead and concrete dust concocted by the collapse of the twin towers in Manhattan.

For six months afterward he stood guard during rescue and recovery efforts as trucks and heavy equipment rumbled past and ash and dust swirled around him.

It was a gray blizzard. "I went home on a daily basis covered in soot," said Castrillo, then a 16-year veteran of the New York Police Department. "My wife couldn't believe the smells I was bringing home."

The shortness of breath, acid reflux and chest pain came later, after Castrillo, 44, retired from the department and moved with his wife, Evelyn, to Town 'N Country in northwest Hillsborough County.

Two months ago, health professionals put his 9/11 history together with his symptoms. He is registered with a database of first responders being compiled by Logistics Health Inc., which manages the World Trade Center National Responder Health Program.

The federally-funded program monitors and treats 9/11 responders who live outside the New York City and New Jersey metropolitan area.

Estimates indicate about 1,000 responders live in the Tampa Bay area. Overall, almost 91,500 people, including firefighters, police officers, medical professionals and volunteers, were part of the rescue, recovery and cleanup.

Many have reported respiratory and lung problems as well as post-traumatic stress disorder.

On Monday, Castrillo was seen for the first time by Toni Belisle, clinic medical director for Occupational Health Service at University Community Hospital-Carrollwood. The hospital also has clinics in Pasco and Pinellas counties.

Soon the hospital will forward reports from Castrillo's medical tests to Logistics Health, which then will refer him for federally paid medical treatment.

"We feel a little bit more calm about it," Castrillo said. "Now I know somebody is going to do something about it."

Castrillo is the fourth responder patient seen by University Community since February.

"It's a wonderful opportunity," Belisle said. "It's been a slow trickle in. Even if we can get a small percent of everyone out there, it's helpful. They can get some questions answered and relieve some anxiety."

For the past two years, Castrillo has had a string of emergency room visits for chest pains and difficulty breathing.

He gave up his lawn service business. He tried part-time work as a truck driver, but after an hour he would be in agony from the waist up.

"I know I want to work. That's the toughest part," Castrillo said. "I don't want to sit back and feel sorry for myself."

No one had an explanation. A doctor did treat him for anxiety, Castrillo said, a diagnosis based on 20 years as a police officer and "the experience I went through on 9/11."

He arrived at ground zero about 11 a.m. that Tuesday, just after the World Trade Center towers had fallen.

It was so smoky no one could see more than a few feet. It was fairly quiet. People seemed dazed. There was much confusion.

"Very surreal; it felt like you were in a bad disaster movie," Castrillo said.

He rode in a van with other officers, looking for people who needed help.

For the first three weeks, responders wore paper masks.

He and other responders didn't think about a future of poor health.

"We were thinking we had a job at hand, and we had to do it effectively," Castrillo said.

For information or to register as a responder, call Logistics Health at 1-877-498-2911.

Gold9472

03-15-2009, 10:26 AM

CITY 'SLAP' AT 9/11 UNIFORMED HEROES

http://www.nypost.com/seven/03152009/news/regionalnews/city_slap_at_9_11_uniformed_heroes_159628.htm

By SUSAN EDELMAN
March 15, 2009

The city has asked a judge to toss out 9/11 claims by 4,600 cops, firefighters, and paramedics, arguing the "uniformed" personnel are not entitled to workplace protection under state labor laws.

The legal maneuver has infuriated Ground Zero responders, who called the city's move "a slap in the face."

New York's Bravest and Finest fought smoldering fires at Ground Zero, dug for human remains and guarded the toxic disaster site for months, the city says. But they don't get the same protections as manual laborers, mechanics and other "working men," the city contends.

"The uniformed plaintiffs do not fall within the class of employees entitled to the protections of the labor law," city lawyer James Tyrrell argues in a motion filed in Manhattan federal court.

Uniformed workers make up half of about 9,000 city employees, construction workers and others who have filed suits against the city in the World Trade Center cleanup.

If the city gets its way, NYPD and Port Authority cops, firefighters and EMTs would also be dismissed from claims against the city's WTC contractors.

But a lawyer for the workers, Paul Napoli, said the city's motion would unfairly "deprive uniformed service workers of basic occupational safety and health under established New York law."

"I'm furious," said ex-detective Mike Valentin, 45, who retired on disability from the NYPD in 2007 with severe lung disease and other ailments. He carries an oxygen tank, sleeps with a machine that helps him breathe, and was recently diagnosed with kidney disease.

"There is a special place in hell reserved for Mike Bloomberg," said Valentin, a father of three who launched the 9/11 Police Aid Foundation to help other ill and struggling responders.

"The callous indifference shown by the mayor enrages me. It's really sad that the city is protecting the contractors more than its unformed services."

Gold9472

03-21-2009, 06:08 AM

Coalition Wants City To Honor 9/11 Health Claims

http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/95924/coalition-wants-city-to-honor-9-11-health-claims/Default.aspx

3/21/2009

Members of the NYC Coalition of Uniformed Services came together Thursday to protest what they say is the city's effort to dismiss court claims regarding illness and injury suffered by 9/11 first responders.

Coalition members say the Bloomberg administration wants a Federal Judge to dismiss claims filed by members of the FDNY, NYPD and Port Authority Police.

They say the city argued uniformed personnel are not entitled to workplace protection under state labor laws.

"I remember on 9/11 we came down here, all the firefighters, cops, everybody wanted to help out. Now what kind of message is they mayor sending when he doesn't want to help us when we need help," said Kenny Specht, a member of the FDNY.

"It's difficult to hear that I possibly overperformed, did somebody else's job, and because I may have acted as a construction worker, out of necessity, my claim should be dismissed," said John McNamara, a member of the FDNY.

In response, the city says its motion did not ask for the dismissal of a single plaintiff's case.

The city added, "All the motion would do is simplify the issues for the court. The reaction to this motion highlights the need for legislation to reopen the federal Victim Compensation Fund, which the city supports, to provide compensation without the need for costly and divisive litigation."

Gold9472

03-21-2009, 06:08 AM

Outraged First Responders Announce Thursday Press Conference

http://news.prnewswire.com/DisplayReleaseContent.aspx?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/03-19-2009/0004991554&EDATE=

NEW YORK , March 19 /PRNewswire/ -- Members of the City's Uniformed Services outraged by the City of New York's attempt to dismiss their claims for injuries suffered at the World Trade Center site following 9/11 have scheduled a press conference to be held on the steps of City Hall in lower Manhattan on Thursday, March 19, at noon. Famed Civil Rights attorney and public advocate Norman Siegel will speak, along with Jack McDonald, who is the President of the Uniformed Fire Fighters Association and other notable police officers and firefighters. Also appearing will be Marc Jay Bern, one of the Plaintiffs' Liaison Counsel for the pending actions in the Federal Court.

The Bloomberg administration is attempting to have a United States Federal judge dismiss all claims of illness and injury sustained by uniformed services personnel as a result of their exposure to toxic materials during the rescue and recovery efforts after the World Trade Center terrorist attacks. The City's filing is directed specifically against the claims of New York's first responders, i.e., police officers (NYPD and Port Authority Police), firefighters and emergency medical technicians employed by the FDNY, on claims that the basic workplace protections mandated by New York's Labor Laws and extended to NYPD and FDNY members by the General Municipal Law do not extend to the uniformed services personnel who were stationed at the World Trade Center site for rescue, recovery and debris removal operations following the 9/11 attacks. Simply put, the City contends that the statutes requiring that those performing debris removal be provided with personal protective equipment, including respirators, simply do not apply to FDNY and NYPD members who worked at the World Trade Center Site.

The bid for dismissal comes shortly after the Court hearing the cases began a new effort to resolve them. Less than one week earlier, the Honorable Alvin K. Hellerstein, the judge presiding over more than 10,000 World Trade Center cases, announced an aggressive plan for the trials of the most critically injured first responders, paving the way toward a global settlement. In his decision, Judge Hellerstein wrote that "a basis for settlement or valuation by trial should prompt resolution of all such severe cases." A March 2, 2009 editorial in the NEW YORK DAILY NEWS praised Hellerstein's new program as "a magnificent exercise in case management and a powerful mechanism for forcing settlements" after over seven years of court battles.

The City's latest effort to deprive injured police and firefighters of compensation also comes less than a year after a federal appeals court denied its earlier motion to dismiss all of the World Trade Center responders' claims. Judge Hellerstein, who first denied that motion, admonished the defendants not to engage "in endless stratagems of motions and delays," warning that "the availability of a billion dollar fund authorized by Congress should not serve as an encouragement to lengthen and complicate these proceedings."

In February 2003, Congress appropriated $1 billion to the City to insure injury claims arising from debris removal. In announcing the passage of the legislation, Mayor Bloomberg explained, "This legislation is necessary for the City to expedite the payment of claims relating to this effort." To date, not one of the approximately 10,000 World Trade Center respiratory claims has settled; however, City attorneys Patton Boggs have been paid in excess of $100 million in legal fees, taken from the $1 billion dollar federal fund.

The First Responders find these arguments a callous and morally reprehensible attempt to deprive them of basic workplace protections and worse, to question the validity of their debilitating and - in some cases - life threatening illnesses. The motions seek to deprive them of their right to the same workplace protections afforded not only to persons employed on construction and demolition sites, but also to any person "lawfully frequenting" such worksites under, among other things, section 200 of the State Labor Law and the General Municipal Law provisions that extend the right to seek redress for injuries to the uniformed services.

In the days and weeks after 9/11, FDNY firefighters, NYPD and Port Authority police officers and emergency medical technicians responded valiantly and without regard for their own personal safety to rescue and recover as many of their fellow citizens and brother firefighters and police officers as they could find. Seven and a half years later, that very dangerous work in an environment fraught with toxic gases and particulate matter has rendered thousands of those first responders desperately ill and in many cases unable to work.

For more information contact:
Marc Jay Bern, Esq.
Worby Groner Edelman & Napoli Bern, LLP
350 Fifth Avenue, Suite 7413
New York, New York 10118
Phone: (646) 381-7040

This release was issued through WebWire(R). For more information visit http://www.webwire.com.

Gold9472

03-29-2009, 05:47 PM

WTC-FUND 'VAMPIRE' $TAYS ON

http://www.nypost.com/php/pfriendly/print.php?url=http://www.nypost.com/seven/03292009/news/regionalnews/wtc_fund_vampire_tays_on_161861.htm

By SUSAN EDELMAN

March 29, 2009 -- Christine LaSala, who announced she was quitting last year as head of the city's $1 billion fund for World Trade Center claims, quietly stayed at the helm -- but with a cut to her $350,000 pay, The Post has learned.

LaSala, president and CEO of WTC Captive Insurance Co., withdrew her resignation several months later after "voluntarily" slashing her salary to $234,500 in 2007, a spokeswoman said.

"She's like a vampire," a stunned congressional staffer said.

LaSala, 58, who also gets health coverage for herself and a daughter, according to her spokeswoman, remained "with the support" of the WTC Captive's board of directors, composed of city officials and others appointed by Mayor Bloomberg.

Under LaSala's leadership, the insurance fund has spent more than $191 million on lawyers and overhead since 2004 to fight 9,000 claims by 9/11 responders seeking compensation for illnesses blamed on toxic exposure. It has paid $320,000 to five workers for orthopedic injuries.

"I guess it's to be expected that an insurance company that never pays insurance claims would have a CEO who resigns but never leaves," Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan) told The Post.

Maloney said she wants to ask LaSala -- who's set to testify before Congress for the first time Tuesday -- how the fund "can give its executives exorbitant salaries and gold-plated health insurance while the sick workers they're fighting have neither."

LaSala's pay cut took effect in January 2007, two months after The Post revealed her $350,000 salary. That far exceeded the salary of the city's highest-paid employee, Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, who makes $250,000.

WTC Captive manages $1 billion that Congress gave the city to pay claims from the Ground Zero cleanup. The fund dipped to $941 million as of Dec. 31.

Until recently, interest on bond investments covered the expenses. The fund lost $14 million on investments in the last half of 2008, but still came out ahead $700,000 for the year, records show.

Gold9472

03-30-2009, 08:25 AM

9/11 dust victim's sister Leona Hull to pitch for health bill

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/03/30/2009-03-30_911_dust_victims_sister_leona_hull_to_pi.html

BY Joe Kemp
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Monday, March 30th 2009, 4:00 AM

It's been two months since the city medical examiner ruled Leon Heyward died as a result of toxins he breathed in at Ground Zero.

Now Leona Hull, Heyward's sister, hopes his story will help others who are sick as a result of 9/11.

After reading about Heyward in the Daily News, Rep. Carolyn Maloney asked Hull to go to Washington for tomorrow's committee hearing on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

The bill, if passed, will offer medical help and compensation for everyone affected by the attacks on the World Trade Center.

"It's not just about my brother anymore," Hull said. "I'm hoping this can open up doors for other people whose loved ones are sick due to Sept. 11."

Heyward, a father of two, was across the street when the towers went down on 9/11.

He had just clocked in for his shift as an inspector for the Consumer Affairs Department. After he saw the second plane hit, Heyward was told by his supervisor to stay where he was. When the buildings collapsed, he was covered in dust.

He went on to help evacuate handicapped co-workers from his nearby office.

"The final years of Leon's life were one long struggle toget proper care - and just to get by. It was a blessingthat Leon had help from his sister, but he should havehad much more help from his government," said Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens).

After years of suffering seizures and delusions, Heyward, 45, died in October. In January, the city medical examiner blamed his death on the 9/11 dust.

"I'm praying in my heart that they will pass this," Hull said. "It's the right thing to do."

Gold9472

03-31-2009, 04:25 PM

Pols: 9/11 workers likely to get health help

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-uswtc0401,0,4011563.story

(Gold9472: I could cry)

BY TOM BRUNE | tom.brune@newsday.com
3:57 PM EDT, March 31, 2009

WASHINGTON -- Sponsors of a bill to compensate and cover health care costs of ailing 9/11 responders and recovery workers predicted Tuesday the House would pass the long-pending legislation this year.

New York Democratic Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Carolyn Maloney, of Manhattan, key sponsors of the measure, said the bill's ultimate fate lies in the Senate, where Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has promised to introduce a companion bill.

"We have a really good chance of passing this," Nadler said.

Added Maloney, "We're going to get it done. We're going to pass this bill."

Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford) said some Republicans would join Democrats in voting for the bill. Nadler said if Congress passes a bill President Barack Obama has said he would sign it.

Nadler and Maloney made their predictions to two busloads of retired police, firefighters and other workers harmed by their work on the pile or nearby who had come down for a hearing on the bill. They are among the thousands of 9/11 responders whose ailments did not become apparent until after the 911 Victims Compensation Fund closed in 2003.

Nadler and Maloney have proposed a $11-billion fund to both cover health costs and provide compensation. The bill also would limit the liability of the city and the contractors and subcontractors that took part in the recovery and clean up at Ground Zero.

Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) and Rep. Steve Israel (D-Huntington) also expressed optimism and support for the bill after the hearing and in the pep talk to the 9/11 workers.

Gold9472

03-31-2009, 04:29 PM

It's too late: GOP tells 9/11's sick that it's been too long since the attack for compensation

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/03/31/2009-03-31_its_too_late_gop_tells_911s_sick_that_it-1.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Updated Tuesday, March 31st 2009, 4:00 PM

WASHINGTON -- Two busloads of Sept. 11 workers made what's become an annual pilgrimage to Washington Tuesday, pleading for Congress to help the thousands of rescuers and responders left to battle 9/11-induced illness on their own.

About 80 former rescue workers and family appealed at a hearing for lawmakers to reopen the Sept. 11 Victims' Compensation Fund to aide some 11,000 people who have gotten ill since the fund closed in 2005 from their work at Ground Zero, and have since sued the city and contractors.

They got skepticism from some GOP lawmakers, but won support from the former boss of the expired compensation fund, Ken Feinberg, who said the massive effort should be restarted to end the expensive, time-consuming litigation.

"The only reason they're litigating is because the 9/11 fund compensated their brethren, but could not compensate them before it expired," said Feinberg. "They would have met all the criteria and they would have been compensated."

Legislation sponsored by Manhattan Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler, who chaired the Judiciary subcommittee hearing, would reopen the fund for 22 years, allowing people with slower developing ailments like cancer to be compensated for sacrificing themselves on Sept. 11, 2001.

Some Republicans objected that the time frame was too long, and suggested it would be subject to abuse. They also feared creating a semi-permanent fund for victims of the terror attacks would open a precedent that would require similar funds.

The Rev. Bill Minson, a Santa Monica, Calif., preacher who ministered to 9/11 heroes, said setting a precedent for the government to help in major disasters - manmade or natural - was fine.

"The federal government has to be at least prepared to respond when massive numbers of people are suffering," said Minson, who started volunteering at Ground Zero on Sept. 13.

"The Republicans need to think about what they (the workers) have done," Minson said.

"These guys are sick and there's not debating it," said Anne Marie Bauman, 44, whose former NYPD officer husband, Christopher, couldn't make the trip today because of the heart ailments he's suffered since 9/11.

A number of witnesses at the hearing, including contracters and city lawyer Michael Cardozo, said reponing the fund would be the quickest, and probably the cheapest, route to ending lawsuits and easing suffering. Cardozo said the problem with suits is that it pits one set of heroes -- the city and contractors who also sacrificed on 9/11 -- against another.

Bauman said the issue is simple, though.

"There's no one else to help people who deserve it, without the government," said Bauman.

Gold9472

03-31-2009, 04:32 PM

Justice may come for 9/11 victims

http://talkradionews.com/2009/03/justice-may-come-for-911-victims/

by Christina Lovato, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service
Posted by Staff on March 31, 2009

“In a September 2006 peer-reviewed study conducted by the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Program, of 9,550 World Trade Center responders, almost 70 percent had a new or worsened respiratory symptom that developed during or after their time working at Ground Zero. Furthermore, another study documented that, on average, a New York City firefighter who responded to the World Trade Center has experienced a loss of 12 years of lung capacity…. The pain and suffering of the living victims of 9/11 is real and cannot be ignored. We, as a nation, must do more,” stated Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY).

Today at a joint subcommittee hearing under the House Judiciary Committee, witnesses testified and spoke in support of H.R. 847, the “James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009.” Under the Act, responders, area residents, workers, and students who were exposed to the catastrophe of the terrorist attacks on the Twin Towers on 9/11 would be provided comprehensive medical treatment. It would also reopen the Victim Compensation Fund so that people can be compensated for their economic losses.

Barbara Burnette who is a former New York City Police Detective retired from the force after 18.5 years of service due to injuries she developed while working for 23 days in total at the World Trade Center site. Burnette was not provided with any respirator or other protection for her lungs and throat and now has been diagnosed with interstitial lung disease, more specifically, hypersensitivity pneumonitis with fibrosis in her lungs. During the time the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 was in mode, Burnette was not sick and the fund was closed to all applicants in December 2003. “Along with thousands of other rescue, recovery and construction workers, I have filed an individual lawsuit in the Southern District of New York, seeking redress for my respiratory injuries…. My case is now in its fourth year. It has been a long road, and I can’t tell you that I can see an end,” she said.

Over 2,000 rescue workers were compensated with funds from the Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 at a cost to the taxpayer of about $1 billion of the $7 billion spent, stated Kenneth R. Feinberg, the former Special Master of the Federal September 11th Compensation Fund of 2001. “I had enough problems determining eligibility and compensating 5,300 people back in 2001. Whether or not a fund like this should be reopened and the eligibility criteria expanded to include additional types of injury, that is up to the Congress to decide…. It is really an interesting dilemma for the Congress to consider whether it is appropriate to deal with this unfairness of not compensating some of these rescue workers,” expressed Feinberg.

James Melius, an MD and Administrator for the New York State Laborers’ Health and Safety Trust Fund said that the New York State Workers’ Compensation system is difficult to navigate through and is even worse for World Trade Center related illnesses. “The difficulties there are that these are complicated conditions. Our knowledge of them is evolving over time. We don’t know the prognosis for people. It’s more difficult to provide a proper assessment,” concluded Melius. According to information given by Melius, in New York City, uniformed services workers are, for the most part, not covered under the N.Y.S. Workers’ Compensation system but rather have a line of duty disability retirement system managed by New York City. So if a fire fighter, police officer, or other uniformed worker can no longer perform their duties because of an injury or illness incurred on the job, they can apply for disability retirement which allows them to leave with significant retirement benefits, but if a work-related illness becomes apparent after retirement, no additional benefits, including medical care, are provided.

“In the nearly eight years after 9/11, we have done enough talking. Now it is time to pass H.R. 847, the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act,” concluded Nadler.

Gold9472

03-31-2009, 10:14 PM

Maloney Statement on Today's 9/11 Health and Compensation Hearing

For Immediate Release: March 31, 2009
Contact: Joe Soldevere, (646) 831-1649

WASHINGTON-- Rep. Carolyn Maloney offered the following statement about today's hearing before the Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security and International Law Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee on H.R. 847, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009. This legislation would address the health crisis caused by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 by providing medical monitoring and treatment for those exposed to toxins released by the collapse of the World Trade Center towers, and providing compensation for economic losses due to illnesses or injuries caused by the attacks.

Today’s hearing focused on the history of the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) established by Congress to provide compensation to survivors of persons killed, or to those who were injured, in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. The hearing also looked at the current problems arising from injuries sustained by first responders, construction workers, local residents, and other individuals who sustained injuries that did not become manifest until after the deadline for seeking compensation from the VCF.

“Thousands lost their lives on 9/11, but thousands more lost their health --and with it their ability to provide for themselves and their families. The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which Congressmen Nadler, King, McMahon and I introduced with the support of the entire New York Congressional delegation, would reopen the federal Victim Compensation Fund to help those who lost their livelihoods as a result of the 9/11 attacks.

“Reopening the VCF would give thousands of 9/11 responders, lower Manhattan residents, and others a way to recoup their economic losses without having to resort to litigation.

“As it stands now, more than 10,000 people are suing the City of New York and its contractors for damages stemming from the 9/11 attacks. There is a better way. The original VCF, set up in the immediate aftermath of 9/11, allowed family members to get economic relief quickly, without the drawn-out, painful process that so often accompanies litigation.

“Passing our bill would give those who did not get VCF awards the first time around the compensation they need --and hopefully some closure to the trauma they’re still experiencing seven years after the towers fell.

“We have a moral obligation to care for those who were harmed by the terrorist attacks on our country. This is truly the least we can do as a grateful nation.

“I'm grateful to Chairwoman Zoe Lofgren and my Manhattan colleague and neighbor Jerrold Nadler for co-chairing today's hearing, and I'm extremely optimistic that with the support of Chairman Conyers and Speaker Pelosi, the House will at last have the opportunity to pass our bill and resolve these last remaining gaps in our response to the 9/11 attacks.”

Facts on 9/11 Health Issues and H.R. 847:

--Thousands of first responders and others exposed to the toxins of Ground Zero are now sick and need our help. These include New York firefighters, EMTs and police, construction workers, clean-up workers, residents, area workers, and schoolchildren, among others.

--Although most of these people live in the New York/New Jersey area, at least 10,000 people came from around the country to help in the aftermath of the attacks. They hail from all 50 states and nearly every congressional district. Many are sick and others are very concerned about their health. (Please click here for a map of Registry enrollments nationwide and in each congressional district.)

--Illnesses include respiratory and gastrointestinal system conditions such as asthma, interstitial lung disease, chronic cough and gastroesophageal reflux disease, and mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

--More than 400,000 people are believed to have been exposed to toxins from the World Trade Center site.

--Nearly 16,000 responders and at least 2,700 community members are currently sick and receiving treatment. More than 40,000 responders are currently in medical monitoring. 71,000 individuals are enrolled in the WTC Health Registry.

--Those who suffered economic losses as a result of their WTC-related illnesses need and deserve compensation, but have no alternative to the current litigation system.

--The WTC contractors and the City of New York are being sued by over 10,000 people who are sick because of Ground Zero toxins. They face great financial losses because they were asked to help at Ground Zero in the country’s time of need.

H.R. 847 Would Address the 9/11 Health Crisis by:

--Providing medical monitoring and treatment to WTC responders and community members (area workers, residents, students and others) who were exposed to toxins released at Ground Zero.

--Building on the existing monitoring and treatment program by delivering expert medical treatment for these unique exposures at Centers of Excellence.

--Providing for research into WTC-related health conditions.

--Reopening the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund to provide compensation for economic losses and harm as an alternative to the current litigation system.

--Providing liability protections for the WTC contractors and the City of New York.

Gold9472

04-01-2009, 08:28 AM

New hope for 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/newyork/ny-uswtc0112604611mar31,0,7065318.story

BY TOM BRUNE | tom.brune@newsday.com
10:23 PM EDT, March 31, 2009

WASHINGTON - Sponsors of a bill to reopen the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund for thousands of ailing Ground Zero first responders and workers predicted Tuesday that the House would pass the long-sought legislation this year.

But it was unclear Tuesday how the bill would fare in the Senate, where aides say there may be resistance to its $11-billion price tag and its promise of compensation that the Congressional Budget Office estimated to be an average of $350,000 each for 18,000 workers and residents near Ground Zero.

Democratic Reps. Jerrold Nadler and Carolyn Maloney of Manhattan expressed optimism about House passage as they spoke to two busloads of former police officers, firefighters and workers who came down from Long Island and New York City for yesterday's House hearing on the bill.

"We have a really good chance of passing this for the first time," said Nadler.

Nadler said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) supports the bill. Another supporter, Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford), said some Republicans would vote for it.

King said the House could pass it as soon as May or June. But Maloney said in a statement later she hoped for passage "by the eighth anniversary of the attacks" on Sept. 11, 2009.

Noting that President Barack Obama said he supported the bill when running for president last year, Nadler and Maloney said the bill's fate would then lie in the Senate.

They said Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) has said he would introduce a companion bill as its original backer, Hillary Rodham Clinton, has left the Senate.

Schumer, who came in for some barbed comments at the hearing for not pushing the bill, issued a statement saying he'll ask Clinton's replacement, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, to share responsibility for the bill.

"We're very concerned about the health of the 9/11 workers, and we're working with Senator Gillibrand on the best way to help them," it said.

Thousands of workers connected to Ground Zero became ill after the Victims' Compensation Fund for 9/11 workers stopped taking claims in 2003 and they now seek compensation and health care costs.

About 11,000 of them are suing the city and contractors, witnesses said. A $1-billion fund Congress set up has spent $350,000 on claims - and $200 million to challenge the claims.

The bill, which would reopen the fund and limit contractors' liability, would send an important signal so that workers and contractors will not be reluctant to respond to any future attacks or disasters, backers of the legislation said.

The bill also represents the best hope for those who are ailing and for the city, both of which are tied up in lengthy litigation, said New York City Corporation Counsel Michael Cordozo. There will be no winners in the litigation, he said.

Gold9472

04-01-2009, 10:53 PM

A Tribute To John Feal

Yesterday, John Feal, along with several other 9/11 First Responders went down to Washington D.C. to attend the hearing on the James Zadroga 9/11 Health And Compensation Act. From what I understand, he was singled out by the Congressmen, and applauded for his efforts. I want to say congratulations John. Just to give people an idea of how much you've fought for the responders, here's a little tribute to you (that barely covers your fight). Thank you for doing the right thing. I am very proud to say that you are my friend.

__________________________________________________ ___________

The EPA is a “bunch of brainiacs and bookworms who just look at numbers but don’t look at people’s pain,” said John Feal, a construction worker who lost half a foot in an accident while working in “the pit” at Ground Zero. “The people [downtown] and in Brooklyn pay taxes and deserve to know their tax money is going to protect their health.”

John Feal - [NYMetro (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=75170&postcount=131), 12/13/2005]

John Feal, Valenti's friend and the founder of the Feal Good Foundation, an advocacy group for 9/11 first responders suffering from ground zero-related illnesses, called the workers' compensation ruling encouraging, but added that more must be done to help those who have gotten sick. "Individually, that's great," said Feal, a demolition supervisor who lost part of his foot when it was crushed by an eight-ton beam during the recovery effort at ground zero. "What stinks is that so many others in his position that have 9/11 illnesses still have problems getting [their compensation], or may never get theirs. Vito won a battle, but it's still a long war."

John Feal - [lilherald.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=76684&postcount=189), 2/8/2007]

Feal said after he felt sorry for himself for about a year; then, after he realized other responders were worse off, he decided to create the FealGood Foundation. "People are suffering and dying and there is nothing I can do to save Joe Picurro and Father Stephen, but I can help ease the pain," he said.

Feal believes the recent $25 million pledge by President Bush to help rescue workers who have been sickened from the site is "political bread crumbs."

"They shouldn't have to suffer because the federal government remains idle," he said, adding, "And the lack of compassion that has trickled down from our leaders has become a snowball in society where 9/11 responders are being forgotten."

John Feal - [ocobserver.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=76783&postcount=191), 2/11/2007]

Feal's foot was crushed from falling metal.

"I ended up getting wedged in and buried beneath the ground," Feal said.

John Feal - [wcbstv.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=76955&postcount=197), 2/16/2007]

A letter between myself and Susan Edelman from the NYPost on 2/19/2007 (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=77053&postcount=201).

"Dear Jon,

Thanks so much for your kind note. I care very much about the WTC workers and hope that those sickened by their contribution get the care and financial help they desperately need.

John Feal has been a great ally.

Keep in touch.

Sue"

"We're not the little boys crying wolf anymore. It's a 'told you so.' This whole time we weren't just running around saying we're sick. We now have legitimate proof," said Long Island resident John Feal. "But the fact that it took five years is insulting. The federal government's lack of compassion in helping heroes is insulting."

Feal, who heads the not-for-profit Feal Good Foundation to call attention to the issue, is hoping this development helps the thousands of ongoing cases brought by rescue and construction workers against the city.

John Feal - [silive.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=80662&postcount=233), 5/24/2007]

"I applaud the medical examiner for making this direct link, but its six years late and we need more doctors to come forward and say these brave souls are sick because of the aftermath of 9-11," responder John Feal said.

John Feal - [wcbstv.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=80774&postcount=236), 5/28/2007]

John Feal on DemocracyNow (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=81830&postcount=258) 6/21/2007

Feal, 40, of Nesconset, briefly watched Whitman's testimony before becoming agitated by her "excuses." "There's not a word that comes out of her mouth that I believe," Feal said.

Feal was a demolition supervisor at Ground Zero from Sept. 12 to Sept. 17, 2001, when a steel beam fell on his left foot, and doctors had to amputate half of it, he said. He now runs the FeelGood Foundation, a nonprofit advocacy group for 9/11 responders.

John Feal - [Newsday (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=82052&postcount=272), 6/25/2007]

John Feal, creator of the FealGood Foundation, is the mastermind behind the First Responders Concert.

Feal was a construction worker who began demolition at the World Trade Center site on September 12. On September 17, an 8,000-pound steal beam fell on and crushed his left foot. He was hospitalized for 11 weeks and lost his foot.

“For a year, I was depressed and suicidal,” like many others who were injured at Ground Zero, Feal, explained. He tried to get worker's comp and appealed to the 9/11 relief fund, but he was turned down.

In 2003, he decided, “To stop feeling sorry for [him]self,” and devoted his life to making sure that 9/11 victims and their families received the care that they desperately need.

“It's time for people to help each other,” said Feal, who will also be donating a kidney to a man he met through his organization. “As a country, we took one on the chin and moved forward,” he explained, “but we cannot forget who we left behind.”

The FealGood Foundation, a non-profit organization Feal created to educate the public about the health effects of 9/11 First Responders, and gives 100 percent of their donations to First Responders to victims and their families, was born out of that determination to help others.

First Responders are anyone that was at Ground Zero, said Feal, “cops, firefighters, EMS, EMT, even civilians that were effected by 9/11 - we don't discriminate.

“This is no way for heroes to be treated,” he said of the men and women who worked tirelessly at Ground Zero - many even giving their lives.

Feal contacted Wasserman about the concert, he explained, as a way for the organization to “step it up a notch and make it bigger,” to help all who were affected. Along with other apparel, the foundation will also be selling limited edition Doo-Wop t-shirts on its web site, www.fealgoodfoundation.com.

“We're at 6 years, and its catastrophic now,” he explained of the problems 9/11 victims and their families deal with, and of the lack of help they receive. “Usually fundraising is a lot smaller,” he said about the organization. “We wanted to help on a bigger scale.”

Feal plans to hold another concert in December, and next year make them a more regular event.

John Feal - [queenscourier.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=82559&postcount=277), 7/5/2007]

John Feal writes a letter posted on MichaelMoore.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=82694&postcount=278), 7/12/2007

John Feal writes a letter to Rudy Giuliani posted on MichaelMoore.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=83900&postcount=292), 8/10/2007

WTC responder spearheads three-way kidney transplant [Newsday (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=85014&postcount=312), 8/30/2007]

The newspaper said victim advocates were skeptical that would be adequate to cover care for long-term illnesses of thousands of people and to compensate the roughly 150 families who blame the death of a relative on work at Ground Zero.

"If you do the math, it's not that handsome a settlement for the 9/11 responders," the newspaper quoted John Feal, a responder and Ground Zero activist, as saying.

John Feal - [Reuters (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=87360&postcount=344), 10/16/2007]

"We didn't think we'd raise that much money. We were just so excited when we found out. We were blown away by how generous people were," said one student.

But when John Feal arrived, Giles became emotional. Feal lost a foot as a 9/11 responder at ground zero. He is the founder of Feal Good Foundation and has adopted Giles? case.

"We're going to show the federal government that while they sit idle that people like us that really have nothing after 9/11, can still make a difference and help," Feal said.

Those who came to the fundraiser brought a donation. In the end, the amount totaled $5,000. The sum brought Giles to tears, once again.

John Feal - [MSNBC (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=88157&postcount=363), 10/27/2007]

Riordan and the group's founder John Feal attended the event Friday night in Barnegat.

Feal lauded the recent response to Giles' plight, an unfortunate situation which, he pointed out, is not unique among Sept. 11 responders. In the past two months, Feal estimated Riordan, an attorney specializing in workers' compensation, had added 66 cases to his load, including Giles'. Riordan has taken Giles' case pro bono.

John Feal - [pressofatlanticcity.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=88158&postcount=364), 10/27/2007

The efforts received a big boost this week when a published report about his struggles caught the eye of John Feal, a 9/11 responder who heads the FealGood Foundation — a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading awareness about the disaster's long-term health effects on those who worked at the World Trade Center.

"In 2001, on Sept. 11, everybody was patriotic and everybody wanted to help. I hope I can resurface some of those feelings," Feal said. "You don't need a plane to hit a building to be compassionate."

Feal, who has helped dozens of other responders, began a massive public-relations campaign on Giles' behalf, including appearances on Star Jones' CourtTV show and CBS news.

He drummed up more than $2,000 in a few days, drawing donations from unlikely sources, including more than $100 from elementary school students in Purchase, N.Y.

"These were 10- and 11-year-olds doing what they can, and, meanwhile, our federal and state government sits by while more and more people die," Feal said.

As part of his foundation, Feal has advocated for the release of funding to help the estimated 30,000 responders suffering from 9/11-attack-related physical and mental illnesses.

"There are thousands of Charlie Gileses out there," he said.

In addition to raising money to save the Giles family home, Feal has found an attorney experienced with 9/11 workers' rights to handle Giles' government claims pro bono. While any government check is undoubtedly too far away to arrive in time for Tuesday's deadline, Feal said he hopes the attention drawn to Giles will spur more support for others in need.

"People like Charlie Giles can't move on because they don't have justice," he said. "The government needs to do more; that's the bottom line."

John Feal - [app.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=88192&postcount=365), 10/28/2007]

"It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that all these healthy men who were working in their 30s are dying in their 40s now," said John Feal, head of the not-for-profit Feal Good Foundation, which advocates for 9/11 responders and their families. "In 10 years, we're going to outnumber the people who died [on Sept. 11]."

John Feal - [firerescue1.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=89865&postcount=404), 11/30/2007]

John Feal, founder of the FealGood Foundation, said, "These people risked their lives without prejudice. There is no money in the world that is going to save their lives, but we can give them a little compassion and respect. We give them a safety and support system and give them hope."

Feal is a 9/11 first responder. He is one of the many injured at what he calls "The Pile." Feal has had to have his foot amputated and underwent months and months of therapy to recover from the ordeal. Like many 9/11 responders, he also suffers from breathing ailments as a result of his work at the site and can no longer work. Yet, in 2005, he started the FealGood Foundation to help those who are so much worse off than he is.

Although he may no longer be able to work a job, Feal has made it his daily duty to help other survivors and advocate on their behalf. He even donated a kidney to another first responder - a man he had never met - whose kidneys failed because of his 9/11 service.

"In 2001, on Sept. 11, everybody was patriotic and everybody wanted to help," Feal said. "You don't need a plane to hit a building to be compassionate."

John Feal - [examiner.gmnews.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=90161&postcount=417), 12/6/2007]

John Feal, a demolition supervisor who lost part of a foot at ground zero, said, "I am sick and I am disgusted that we're out here in the cold begging for help."

John Feal - [Newsday (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92125&postcount=454), 1/27/2008]

"This isn't a political issue," said Feal, who has developed lung problems in addition to having 11 surgeries on his feet. "This is a moral and human issue. This is about people dying."

Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton), praised Feal for the work of the Feal Good Foundation, but added, "he ought not have to do that. ... The public sector has the resources and it has the obligation."

John Feal - [Newsday (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92161&postcount=457), 1/28/2008]

"We want to implore our new President to make 9/11 health care an issue," said John Feal, a Ground Zero volunteer whose foot was crushed by an 8-ton steel beam.

His FealGood Foundation, set up to draw attention to the health problems of Ground Zero workers, organized the trip after Congress cut health care funding by 77%.

Only $25 million has been budgeted for 2009, down from $108 million this year, he said.

"The bottom line is, human life has taken a backseat to economics," said Feal. "It's an insult.

John Feal - [NYDailyNews (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92578&postcount=464), 2/15/2008]

"We're not going to stand for being cut out of the budget by 77 percent,” said John Feal, founder of the Fealgood Foundation. “It's not adequate and it’s an insult.”

John Feal - [ny1.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92752&postcount=467), 2/25/2008]

The trip was co-organized by the FealGood Foundation, established by crippled first respondent John Feal to raise awareness about the health issues faced by the World Trade Center workers. Health advocacy group 9/11 Health Now, based in Babylon, N.Y., also helped plan the lobbying trip.

John Feal - [nyunews.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92757&postcount=468), 2/26/2008]

The bus ride was organized by the FealGood Foundation, a group founded by John Feal, a 9/11 volunteer whose foot was crushed by an 8-ton steel beam.

"This is like show and tell," Feal told the Daily News Monday. "For 6 1/2 years we've been neglected, denied and lied to."

John Feal - [NYDailyNews (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92758&postcount=469), 2/26/2008]

The rally was organized by the Fealgood Foundation and its founder, John Feal, 41, of Nesconset, who said a piece of steel crushed one of his feet when he was working on a demolition crew at the trade center. He said he faced foreclosure on his home after he was denied workers' compensation and Social Security benefits.

"I am one mad American," Feal told the crowd.

John Feal - Newsday (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=92759&postcount=470), 2/26/2008]

Though the recent ruling is good news for Feal and his fellow responders, he wasn't completely content with the decision. Feal said in a phone interview that the decision was "a step in the right direction, but it was four to five years late." However, he added that he was "optimistic that by the end of the year, people will start getting compensated."

John Feal - [nyunews.com (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=93297&postcount=483), 4/2/2008]

"This gives legitimate foundations a black eye," said John Feal, whose FealGood Foundation replaced Parisi's as a charity partner for the motorcycle run.

"As a foundation founder, I'm not surprised," he said. "As a 9/11 responder, I was irate."

John Feal - [NJHerald (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=93453&postcount=492), 4/13/2008]

Activist John Feal said there's only one punishment for Whitman that fits the crime. "She should go to jail for manslaughter," he said.

John Feal - [NYDailyNews (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=93572&postcount=497), 4/23/2008]

Here is an article in Newsday about "Save The Brave (http://www.yourbbsucks.com/forum/showpost.php?p=94942&postcount=534)."

Sept. 11 First Responders to Visit W.Va. School

http://wvde.state.wv.us/news/1780/

Posted: October 21, 2008

BUCKHANNON, W.Va. – John Feal, founding president of the FealGood Foundation and a demolition expert who worked at Ground Zero following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, will bring his message to Upshur County students and residents on Friday, Oct. 24. Feal and up to seven other first responders will meet with students at Buchannon Upshur High School beginning at 8:30 a.m. The group will meet with the community later in the day.

Feal, like 70 percent of 9/11 workers, suffers from post-9/11 illnesses. One of his feet had to be amputated after being crushed by an eight-ton steel beam. He also suffers from a respiratory syndrome called World Trade Center Cough and posttraumatic stress disorder.

Feal agreed to visit West Virginia after some Buckhannon-Upshur High School students contacted him via e-mail after watching a documentary in health educator Mateal Poling’s class. The documentary, Save the Brave, chronicles the daily struggles of 9/11 Ground Zero workers in the seven years since the attacks. Greg Quibell, one of the men featured, died of his injuries the day before the film’s premiere in New York.

“You have no idea how excited they were when Feal replied -- me too,” Poling said. “It is hard to imagine that these kids were only first and second graders on 9/11, but thanks to Feal’s efforts, our students are starting to have a better understanding of the profound effects of that day.”

Feal said he is “humbled and honored to meet such amazing Americans.”

“They are a reflection of the teacher who has taught them well,” Feal said. “Your resolve and testament is what makes great future leaders of this country. We look forward to coming to the great state of West Virginia to share our stories and tell of the thousands that need our help.”

The FealGood Foundation’s primary mission, according to its Web site “is to spread awareness and educate the public about the catastrophic health effects on 9/11 first responders, as well as to provide assistance to relieve these great heroes of the financial burdens placed on them over the last five years.” The foundation also works to create a network of advocacy on 9/11 healthcare issues.

For more information, contact Mateal Poling or Mikaela Poling at (304) 472-2155 or by e-mail at luikart2@gmail.com. The FealGood Foundation’s Web site is http://www.fealgoodfoundation.com.

Gold9472

04-23-2009, 11:06 AM

Reopen 9/11 health fund, pols plead

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/04/23/2009-04-23_reopen_911_health_fund_pols_plead.html

By Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Thursday, April 23rd 2009, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - The push to win long-term help for the heroes of 9/11 inched forward in Congress on Wednesday with an impassioned display meant to prod forgetful lawmakers to act.

Several New York legislators are trying to reopen the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund to aid thousands of responders and others who have gotten sick since the fund closed in 2005.

But their colleagues have balked at the potential cost, leaving the measure to languish without a vote.

In testimony meant to finally move the bill, New Yorkers admitted the cost is high, but said it pales next to the sacrifices made by people who answered the call on Sept. 11, 2001 - many of whom packed a House hearing room.

"The solutions ... are neither easy nor inexpensive, but they are part of our country's moral obligation," said Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens). "We must take care of the people who took care of us."

"There is really no reason to delay this any further," said Long Island Rep. Pete King, a Republican, who noted there are people ill from their 9/11 service in 431 of the 435 congressional districts.

"We are so close to the finishing line," he said. "I really think it would be outrageous and disgraceful not to get the job done."

Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand are working on the measure in the Senate, where its future appears even less certain.

Gold9472

05-04-2009, 08:25 AM

Kathleen, meet Martin: 9/11 hero has lesson for U.S. Health Sec'y Sibelius

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/05/04/2009-05-04_kathleen_meet_martin_911_hero_has_lesson_for_us _health_secy_sibelius.html

Monday, May 4th 2009, 4:00 AM

It was New York's great good fortune to see the smiling face of Fire Lt. Martin Fullam on his release from the hospital last week after a lung transplant.

"I'm the luckiest man in the world," Fullam said as he left New York-Presbyterian Hospital Columbia in Manhattan. While luck played a role in Fullam's survival, he is also a hero whose story reinforces the pressing need to establish a coordinated health program for 9/11 rescue and recovery workers.

Fullam, now 56, raced to Ground Zero that terrible day and worked 10-hour shifts for weeks at The Pile, inhaling toxic dust and destroying his lungs in the same way that so many others destroyed their lungs.

Robbed of 70% of his lung capacity by pulmonary fibrosis, he needed an oxygen tank to breathe. His only hope was a transplant and, miraculously, a lung became available.

The procedure is costly. Fullam had the benefit of a federal program for Trade Center responders that has operated hand-to-mouth for years.

At the same time, Fullam also suffers from an exceedingly rare autoimmune disorder that attacks muscles, called polymyositis. It shows up in five of every 100,000 people in the general population, but the Fire Department, with 12,000 members, has recorded six cases.

Doctors are certain pulmonary fibrosis is Trade Center-related. But not whether WTC exposure triggered polymyositis. The question demands research and answers.

Newly confirmed federal Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sibelius ought to take a close look at Fullam's history. For it documents why the federal government must get fully behind health care for the forgotten victims of 9/11.

The effort needs proper funding as well as leadership by an expert who can monitor 9/11 health trends and treatment advances with an eye toward spotting emerging WTC-linked diseases. That person should be the indomitable Dr. John Howard.

As head of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Howard was the first federal official to recognize that WTC rescue and recovery workers were really and truly sick. Named by President George W. Bush as the nation's 9/11 health coordinator, he advocated forcefully for monitoring and treatment programs - and was fired for those efforts.

Howard was, and is, the best physician for the job.

Gold9472

05-09-2009, 07:13 PM

$70 Million for 9/11 Health Care in President’s Budget

For Immediate Release: May 7, 2009

Contacts: Joe Soldevere (Maloney), 212-860-0606
Ilan Kayatsky (Nadler), 212-367-7350
Carol Danko (King), 202-225-7896
Lauren Amendolara (McMahon), 202-225-842

Washington, D.C. – Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Peter King (R-NY), and Michael McMahon (D-NY) today applauded the inclusion of $70,723,000 in funding for the World Trade Center Health Programs in President Obama’s budget for Fiscal Year 2010. The lawmakers are sponsors of the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (H.R. 847), which would provide more than $10 billion for critical health care and compensation for those sickened or injured in the aftermath of 9/11. The Members of Congress hope to pass the bill with President Obama’s support by the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

“It’s a new administration and a new day for 9/11 health programs. This $70 million in federal funding will keep the doors of 9/11 health clinics open until we pass comprehensive 9/11 health legislation, hopefully this summer,” said Rep. Maloney. “I thank President Obama for his continued support of the heroes and heroines of 9/11.”

“I want to thank President Obama for including this $70 million in funding for the WTC Health Programs,” said Rep. Nadler. “This $70 million will be put to immediate use for the significant health care needs of first responders, residents, workers and students who are suffering ill health effects as a result of exposure to post-9/11 toxins. Now let’s pass the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act and ensure that sufficient funding will be available every year for these victims.”

“It’s been over seven years since the heroes of 9/11 were exposed to the toxins of the dust cloud, yet the health effects from exposure continue to develop,” said King. “The World Trade Center Health Programs are essential to monitoring the health of all who were exposed and I am pleased that the president has included 9/11 health funding in his budget.”

“President Obama’s inclusion of $70 million for 9/11 health programs shows the residents of New York City, and the citizens of this country at large, that we will indeed never forget,” said Rep. McMahon. “I applaud the President for his commitment to these heroes.”

Earlier this year, the House passed and President Obama signed into law the Fiscal Year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act (H.R. 1105), which contains $70 million in funding for FY 2009 for federal 9/11 health programs.

Gold9472

05-17-2009, 11:53 AM

Dear Jonathan:

Thank you for contacting me with your support for H.R. 847, the proposed James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009. I appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns.

As you may know, H.R. 847 would, if enacted, provide medical treatment and compensation to first responders, construction workers, local residents and others who became ill as a result of exposure to Ground Zero toxins after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The bill would re-open the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) in order to provide compensation to the responders and community members whose illnesses did not manifest until after the VCF deadline.

H.R. 847 was introduced by Representative Carolyn Maloney of New York on February 4, 2009 and was referred to the House Committees on Energy and Commerce and the Judiciary. Although I am not a Member of either of these Committees, please know that I intend to support the bill should it come before the full House for a vote.

Again, thank you for contacting me with your views on this issue. If I can be of help to you or your family in the future, please let me know.

With kind regards, I am Sincerely,

Jim Gerlach
Member of Congress

Gold9472

06-08-2009, 01:43 PM

New bills would aid 9/11 heroes
Legislation in Congress and City Council would help first responders by increasing medical coverage

http://www.silive.com/news/advance/index.ssf?/base/news/12444633033980.xml&coll=1

BY PETER N. SPENCER
ADVANCE CITY HALL BUREAU
Monday, June 08, 2009

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The way Bay Terrace resident Gary White puts it, he didn't retire three years ago, he just switched careers from commanding officer of a Lower Manhattan detective squad to "professional patient."

His list of maladies includes severe asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease, sleep apnea, pulmonary artery disorder and a stroke that resulted in temporary paralysis and permanent brain damage.

Physicians at several hospitals, including Staten Island University Hospital, traced the 54-year-old's medical condition to months of recovery efforts at "The Pile" at Ground Zero and the former Fresh Kills Landfill.

A panel of surgeons at the NYPD Medical Board didn't buy it, and twice refused him a line-of-duty disability pension. That designation would have granted White a bigger income and better benefits than the regular pension he now gets, including footing the cost of thousands of dollars of out-of-pocket expenses.

But legislation recently introduced in City Hall and Congress after more than a year of delay may help White and other officers who have fallen through the cracks of the confusing and incomplete medical care provided by the government for Sept. 11 illnesses.

"I don't understand. I am sick from 9/11. The doctors have said so. So why am I being denied?" White said.

White helped to create The 9/11 Police Aid Foundation, in part to lobby for the bills, which would provide full coverage and long-term funding for all responders. Those bills have stalled, mostly amid concerns over the costs.

"The bill before the Council will certainly increase the costs of medical coverage -- in fact, it is extremely difficult to estimate what those costs will be," said Joey Kara Koch, a member of the police and fire pension boards and special counsel to Mayor Michael Bloomberg on the issues of Sept. 11 illnesses, at a hearing for the Council bill in City Hall last week.

The bill, introduced last February by then-North Shore Councilman Michael McMahon, would provide full line-of-duty health coverage for a city employee with any of the designated Sept. 11 medical conditions as long as they meet eligibility requirements for the time spent at World Trade Center sites. All three Island Councilmen have signed on as sponsors.

NO SUPPORT FROM MAYOR
Beside the unknown costs, Ms. Koch said the Bloomberg administration does not support the bill because it "strips medical professionals of the ability" to make decisions.

But Frank Tramontano, research director for the Patrolman's Benevolent Association, said the NYPD's medical panel rarely grants line-of-duty benefits to officers who meet the state criteria for Sept. 11 illnesses. From January 2007 to December 2008, 59 police officers were approved for accidental disability under the state World Trade Center Disability Law; only three were provided line-of-duty benefits, according to PBA stats. Tramontano estimates some 10,000 PBA members -- about a third of the city's current police force -- may have applied for such benefits.

In total, more than 1,000 uniformed city employees were granted line-of-duty disability for post-Sept. 11 medical conditions, though it is unclear how many applied.

"We do not have a pre-approved list of illnesses. If something comes our way, we make the evaluation and follow the science that has been published," she said.

The problem, advocates and medical experts say, is that the science of post-9/11 illness is changing almost every year, as more and more people exhibit new symptoms.

The city and federal government have addressed the problem by providing free integrated physical and mental health care for eligible patients at designated World Trade Center Centers of Excellence across the city, including one at Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton. But critics point out the coverage is limited. The centers do not treat illnesses that have yet to be recognized as Sept. 11-related -- cancer, for example -- and it is difficult for some of the most ill patients to travel to them.

ON THE FEDERAL LEVEL
Thus far, the 9/11 health centers have been funded through ad-hoc appropriations, and a non-responder program is funded entirely with city dollars. Members of Congress from New York presented a long-term solution with the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which was finally introduced at a session in February. The bill would establish a permanent WTC Health Program within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to provide medical monitoring and treatment benefits to those who adversely affected by the attacks.

The bill stalled last year, but was re-introduced this February with strong support from House Democratic leaders and the bipartisan New York delegation.

James Oddo (R-North Shore) said the Council could be "fine-tuned" in a way that controls the costs. However, he stressed the "overriding concern" is the city meeting its obligation to those who sacrificed their health in the performance of their duties.

"If there are X number of officers who are genuinely impacted by exposure to Ground Zero, then we have a responsibility to take care of them, regardless of the fiscal impact," Oddo said.

"They were there for us. I haven't forgotten that," he added.

Peter N. Spencer covers City Hall for the Advance. He can be reached at spencer@siadvance.com.

Gold9472

06-10-2009, 10:06 AM

Awards ceremony pays tribute to NYPD's Finest, including 9/11 heroes

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/06/10/2009-06-10_awards_honor_nypd_finest.html

6/10/2009

Awarded a medal of honor by the NYPD Tuesday, Detective Angel Cruz said he was just glad he was around to accept it.

And no wonder.

Cruz came within a quarter-inch of death two years ago after a vicious thug plunged a six-inch knife into his head in a Brooklyn subway station.

Though gravely wounded, Cruz shot and wounded the suspect, chased him down the stairs and held him at gunpoint.

"I feel blessed to even be here," said Cruz, one of 52 cops honored for bravery on the job and off-duty at an annual ceremony.

He returned to full duty in October 2007, and was promoted to detective last year.

For the first time, the NYPD awarded Distinguished Service Medals to 10 officers who died of illnesses caused by their work at Ground Zero and the Fresh Kills landfill after Sept. 11, 2001.

Mayor Bloomberg hung a medal around a young Garret Helmke's neck in recognition of his late father, Police Officer Robert Helmke, who died July 28, 2007, from 9/11 sickness.

Detective Richard Burt was also recognized for calm under fire with a Medal of Valor for his response when a gunman killed Councilman James Davis at City Hall July 23, 2003. From 40 feet away, Burt pulled out his Glock 9-mm. and fired six times, killing the gunman.

"It's something that makes you appreciate life," Burt said. "Going home, the small things of life."

Gold9472

06-16-2009, 09:35 AM

9/11 heroes may get health care cuts while hospital fights government

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/06/16/2009-06-16_health_cuts_for_911_heroes.html

Tuesday, June 16th 2009, 4:00 AM

Nearly 2,000 sick 9/11 first responders could be left without medical care while a New Jersey hospital battles with the federal government for more money, the Daily News has learned.

The Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences Institute at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in ., says it expects to run out of federal funding next month.

It has requested more money, but the Office of Management and Budget in Washington has disputed the hospital is broke.

"The promise is that the check's in the mail," said Dr. James Melius, of the New York State Laborers' Health and Safety Fund. "But it's been in the mail now for two months."

A hospital spokesman confirmed that they're waiting for more funding but said he's hopeful the money will come in time.

An OMB spokesman didn't immediately return a call for comment.

But for Charles Giles, a former EMT worker who responded to the World Trade Center attacks, every day without knowing how he will get the medical care he needs is terrifying.

Giles, who takes 28 medications a day, has been treated at the institute for respiratory problems for the past two and a half years.

He said hospital officials told him they were no longer taking appointments past July. "If this place closes, I'm screwed," Giles, 41, told The News.

Gold9472

06-16-2009, 08:22 PM

NY Reps. Express Concern About Funding Problems At 9/11 Health Clinics
-New Jersey Clinic Will Have Only $100K on Hand at Month’s End, May Stop Seeing Patients-

News Release: June 16, 2009

Contacts: Joe Soldevere (Maloney), 212-860-0606
Ilan Kayatsky (Nadler), 212-367-7350
Carol Danko (King), 202-225-7896
Lauren Amendolara (McMahon), 202-225-8420

Washington, D.C. – Today, New York Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King, and Michael McMahon wrote to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Peter Orszag asking him to correct flawed accounting procedures and other obstacles put in place by the previous administration that are impeding the flow of funding to clinics operated by the World Trade Center Health Program (a full copy of the lawmakers’ letter is below). As a result of these difficulties, the WTC Health Program’s New Jersey clinic reports that it will only have $100,000 on hand by the end of June and may have to stop seeing patients by the end of next month.

In a recent letter to New York lawmakers, Director Orszag stated that the WTC Health Program has spent only 50% of the funds Congress has appropriated for 9/11 health care since 2003. Accordingly, OMB has yet to deliver fresh infusions of funding to the Program’s clinics. However, Reps. Maloney, Nadler, King, and McMahon have been informed that the Program’s actual expenditures are far higher than OMB’s figure, which was determined using accounting procedures put in place by the previous administration that do not adequately track the Program’s current expenses and future commitments.

“Unfortunately, the previous administration’s incompetence continues to haunt the World Trade Center Health Program, but I’m confident that the OMB will now take quick action to correct these problems,” said Rep. Maloney. “It’s vitally important that the New Jersey 9/11 health clinic and other Centers of Excellence remain open and delivering much-needed care to the heroes and heroines of 9/11. We look forward to working with the Obama Administration to solve this issue and to pass the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act by the eighth anniversary of the attacks.”

“It is very frustrating that we are still mired in the Bush administration’s legacy of an incompetent and piecemeal approach to 9/11 health care policy,” said Nadler. “What is important now is to correct that failed policy and ensure that the WTC Health Program has the tools it needs to efficiently treat the 9/11 first responders, area workers, students and residents who are in need of health care. We must make sure that the Centers of Excellence can afford to keep their doors open and continue providing quality care. I am hopeful that OMB Director Orszag will provide the Centers the funding they need. And, in the long term, it is essential that we pass the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.”

“It’s been over seven years since the heroes of 9/11 were exposed to the toxins of the dust cloud, yet the health effects from exposure continue to develop,” said King. “The World Trade Center Health Programs are essential to monitoring the health of all who were exposed.”

“It’s shameful that these funds were not being directed appropriately to program clinics serving our first responders,” said Rep. Michael E. McMahon. “For the past five years, we could have made great strides with caring for and treating those who have fallen ill after 9/11. We intend to resolve this problem as quickly as possible with the help of the Administration.”

Reps. Maloney, Nadler, King, and McMahon are the authors of H.R. 847, the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which would make permanent existing 9/11 health programs and reopen the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

The lawmakers also wrote to Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius last week asking to meet with her to discuss the WTC Health Program’s funding problems and restrictions preventing the Program from using federal funds for outreach, benefits counseling, and data evaluation.

###

June 16, 2009

Mr. Peter Orszag
Director, Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20503

Dear Director Orszag:

Thank you for your recent response to our letter of March 26, 2009 regarding funding for the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program.

In your response, you claim that the WTC grantees have only spent 50 percent of the funds appropriated since 2003. We believe that this figure significantly underestimates the actual expenditures and spending commitments of the grantees and thus misrepresents the actual needs of these vital health programs.

These underestimates are due to a combination of factors related to the funding vehicles (i.e., grants) including delays in actual expenditures being reflected in the accounting systems used by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and OMB to track spending in these programs and the fact that these federal accounting systems do not always reflect spending commitments made by the grantees as part of providing medical care for these WTC responders. Within their institutions, the grantees must account for those spending commitments in order not to exceed the amount of funding available through their grants.

We have recently learned that these discrepancies, combined with unexplained delays in processing extensions to the current grants for the clinical centers, have resulted in the New Jersey center having to prepare to stop seeing patients next month due to the delays in extending their grant extension. They report that they will have only $100,000 in available funding left at the end of June, hardly enough to operate a busy medical clinic. This situation was apparently not reflected in the federal accounting systems. Other medical centers serving the WTC responders will soon find themselves in similar situations unless their grants are extended and adequate funding made available to them.

We recognize that the current mechanisms used to fund this program, which were designed by the previous administration, are not ideal and make oversight of the program more challenging. In our proposed legislation, the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (H.R. 847), we have strived to correct that problem by funding the medical care for eligible responders and community residents through a more direct reimbursement system. Meanwhile, as our bill is being considered by Congress, we need to make sure that we continue to provide adequate funding for the badly needed medical care that these people deserve. We cannot continue the restrictive policies of the previous administration who sought to limit this program by unnecessarily restricting the available funding and support for these centers. These restrictions are described in our enclosed letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius.

We look forward to continuing to work with you and OMB on the WTC Health Program and providing care for the heroes and heroines of 9/11.

Sincerely,

CAROLYN B. MALONEY
JERROLD NADLER
PETER T. KING
MICHAEL E. McMAHON
Members of Congress

Joe Soldevere
Press Secretary
Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney
(212) 860-0606 office
(646) 831-1649 cell
maloney.house.gov

Gold9472

06-17-2009, 08:30 AM

$575G reprieve for 9/11 hospital

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/06/17/2009-06-17_575g_reprieve_for_911_hosp.html

BY Stephanie Gaskell
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Wednesday, June 17th 2009, 4:00 AM

A New Jersey hospital that treats sick 9/11 first responders got a last-minute reprieve Tuesday when the feds vowed to send cash to keep it open through September.

The Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences Institute at the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick had told its 1,800 patients it wasn't sure it could stay open past next month.

Federal funding had been held up over an accounting dispute, but late Tuesday the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health said it was sending $575,000 to cover summer expenses.

John Feal, founder of the Fealgood Foundation, which pushes for health care for 9/11 workers, said the money isn't enough.

Feal said, "$575,000 is like putting a Band-Aid on a machine-gun wound.

"Funding for three months is a joke when 9/11 first responders will need treatment for the rest of their lives."

Gold9472

06-23-2009, 08:11 PM

HR847 IS GETTING INTRODUCED INTO THE SENATE
GILLIBRAND, SCHUMER, LAUTENBERG, MENENDEZ TO INTRODUCE JAMES ZADROGA 9/11 HEALTH AND COMPENSATION ACT IN THE U.S. SENATE

Today at 8:07pm

First Time Comprehensive 9/11 Health Legislation Will Be Introduced In Senate

Mayor Bloomberg and Representatives Maloney, Nadler, King, and McMahon to Join Gillibrand to Help Provide Treatment for Community Members, First Responders Suffering From 9/11-Related Health Effects

Joseph Zadroga, Fire Lt. Marty Fullam, Others Affected by Rescue and Clean-Up Efforts to Tell Their Stories

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand will be joined by Senators Charles E. Schumer, Frank R. Lautenberg, and Robert Menendez and Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King and Michael McMahon, along with New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and 9/11 first responders, construction workers, clean-up workers and community members who have suffered from the long term health effects of working at Ground Zero to introduce the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act – the first comprehensive 9/11 health legislation to ever be introduced in the U.S. Senate.

Thousands were lost on the morning of September 11, 2001, but today, thousands more – including first responders, area residents, workers, students and others – are sick and getting sicker from exposure to toxins released from the collapse of the World Trade Center Towers.

The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act would ensure proper monitoring and treatment for the innocent men, women and children that face life-threatening health effects due to the toxins released at Ground Zero in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

WHO: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Senator Charles E. Schumer
Senator Frank R. Lautenberg
Senator Robert Menendez
Reps. Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King, Michael E. McMahon
Joseph Zadroga, father of James Zadroga, the first known death from 9/11-related illness
Fire Lt. Marty Fullam
Ken George, city worker involved in clean-up efforts
Other First Responders, Construction Workers, Clean-Up Workers
New York City Area Residents

DATE: Wednesday, June 24, 2009
TIME: 10:00 AM
PLACE: 301 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C.

Gold9472

06-24-2009, 12:45 PM

Rivals Kirsten Gillibrand, Carolyn Maloney put aside differences to aide 9/11 victims

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2009/06/24/2009-06-24_gillibrand_maloney_put_aside_differences_to_aid e_911_vict.html#ixzz0JMnnNgPC&D

By Michael Mcauliff
6/24/2009

WASHINGTON - Rival New York politicians are putting aside their distaste for one another in hopes of getting the U.S. Senate to embrace a major bill to help the ailing heroes of Sept. 11.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand will team up on a 9/11 health bill Wednesday with Mayor Bloomberg and key members of the House, including Reps. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan) and Pete King (R-Long Island) - who would both like to unseat the recently appointed senator in 2010.

The measure, which would re-open the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund, among other things, is similar to legislation pending in the House that's a cherished cause of Maloney and King.

"All of us must put our political interests aside," King said, explaining why he'd work with a woman he may challenge in the fall. "The health of our 9/11 first responders and workers is too important."

House lawmakers, often led by King and Maloney, have passed numerous 9/11 aide bills over the years, only to see many of them die in the Senate.

They were encouraged that Gillibrand also has the New York's senior senator, Chuck Schumer, on board, and well as Sens. Bob Menendez and Frank Lautenberg, of New Jersy.

"I'm glad that the senators from New York and New Jersey have come together to sponsor this relief for 9/11 responders, residents, workers and students who were exposed to the toxins at Ground Zero," said Maloney, who predicted the House would come through with its version before the next anniversary of the attacks.

So, in spite of the competing ambitions, the rivals climbed on board with Gillibrand.

"We have an undeniable moral obligation to help the heroes of 9/11 and all others exposed, and failure to do so may have long-lasting implications on future response efforts," Gillibrand said.

She even had praise for her competitors, and the woman she succeeded, Secretary of State Clinton.

"I commend my predecessor, Secretary Clinton, as well as my colleagues in both the Senate and the House, who invested tremendous effort over several years to get us to this point," Gillibrand said. "Today we are taking a major step toward fulfilling our obligation, but we have a lot of work left to do."

Gold9472

06-24-2009, 12:53 PM

Senators Introduce 9/11 Health Act

http://www.ny1.com/content/special_reports/wtc_coverage/101261/senators-introduce-9-11-health-act/Default.aspx

6/24/2009

A bill is being introduced in the United States Senate to help all those living with September 11th-related health problems.

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act is the first comprehensive 9/11 health bill to ever be introduced in the Senate.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg and senators from New York and New Jersey are among those in Washington for the event.

The legislation would cover medical monitoring and treatment for first responders, area residents, workers, and many others who are sick from exposure to toxins at the World Trade Center site.

The bill is named after former Detective James Zadroga who was a rescue worker after the attacks. Zadroga was one of the first police officers whose death was blamed on illnesses from dust at the site.

A similar measure was introduced in the House of Representatives in 2007.

Gold9472

06-25-2009, 08:10 AM

Senators seek health care for sick 9/11 workers

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hbFu_USPHXmnxTOR0tOnrbYrckcwD99197B82

By KIMBERLY HEFLING – 15 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — New York and New Jersey lawmakers are asking Congress to provide $12 billion in long-term medical care and monitoring to thousands of Sept. 11 workers who became sick after being exposed to toxic dust and debris at the World Trade Center site.

The bill, introduced Wednesday in the Senate, would reopen until 2031 a compensation fund for those who became ill after a 2003 deadline. It also would expand research of their illnesses and extend medical care to ailing workers who live outside of New York.

"We have an undeniable, moral obligation to provide them with health and treatment they deserve," said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., at a Capitol Hill news conference attended by Sept. 11 workers and other New York and New Jersey lawmakers.

Nearly 16,000 responders and 2,700 community members are sick and receiving treatment, Gillibrand said.

Similar legislation failed last year, partly because New York City officials objected to paying a share of the costs. Under the senators' plan, the cost to New York would not exceed $250 million over a decade, which is half of what it would have paid over that period under legislation that was rejected last year.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who attended the press conference, said he supports the legislation, but still has concerns about the cost to the city.

"This is an attack against the entire country," Bloomberg said. "I think it's a national problem."

Other legislation has been proposed in the House. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said she's confident it will be passed by the upcoming eighth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

The bill was named for James Zadroga, a retired city detective who became ill after working hundreds of hours at ground zero. Zadroga, who died of lung disease at 34 in 2006, was declared killed in the line of duty by the NYPD. But the city medical examiner's office ruled that Zadroga's abuse of prescription drugs exacerbated his lung disease and declined to list him as an official Sept. 11 victim.

Gold9472

06-25-2009, 08:16 AM

Detective’s Name on New 9/11 Health Bill

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/25/nyregion/25zadroga.html?ref=nyregion

By LIBBY NELSON
Published: June 24, 2009

Detective James Zadroga, called in 2006 the first rescuer to die from inhaling dust at ground zero, became a posthumous source of controversy when the city’s medical examiner concluded that his death was not directly related to the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Now Detective Zadroga’s name has cropped up again, this time attached to a bill in the Senate that would establish long-term monitoring and health care for those affected by exposure to the World Trade Center site.

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, introduced by the New York and New Jersey Senate delegations on Wednesday, would establish a monitoring and treatment program, including mental health services, for first responders and New Yorkers exposed to the dust. It would also reopen the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund that Congress established after the attack, while limiting liability for the city and trade center contractors in previously resolved or pending claims.

The bill has no cost estimate yet. A similar bill introduced in the House of Representatives in February would cost $12 billion, said the latest bill’s main sponsor, Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, Democrat of New York.

The House bill, which also bears Detective Zadroga’s name, is currently in committee. Meanwhile, questions linger as to whether he was a Sept. 11 victim.

Detective Zadroga, 34, worked on the rescue and recovery efforts at ground zero for about three weeks after the Sept. 11 attack. Later, his family said, he began experiencing flulike symptoms and difficulty breathing — common symptoms in first responders that doctors called the “World Trade Center cough.” He died in January 2006 at his parents’ home in Ocean County, N.J.

In April 2006, a report on an autopsy by the Ocean County medical examiner’s office concluded that Detective Zadroga’s death was a direct result of his rescue activities at the trade center site. As a result, for 18 months he was widely cited as the first to die from inhaling dust and particles at ground zero.

But that judgment was called into question in October 2007, when the New York medical examiner concluded that Detective Zadroga’s death was not caused by toxic trade center dust at all. Instead, the medical examiner, Dr. Charles S. Hirsch, said it was a result of injecting ground-up prescription drugs. At the time, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg cited the finding as an example of unpopular science and said Detective Zadroga was “not a hero” — remarks he later retracted, with an apology to the family. The mayor and the police commissioner added Detective Zadroga’s name to the Wall of Heroes at 1 Police Plaza last year.

“We don’t name the bills,” said Jason Post, a spokesman for the mayor, when asked if the city supported naming a Sept. 11 victims’ bill for Detective Zadroga.

At a news conference on Wednesday, Mr. Bloomberg said Detective Zadroga “was a police officer who did what we asked him to do, and you can’t walk away from that,” according to a transcript provided by the city.

Ms. Gillibrand said she believed Detective Zadroga died of Sept. 11-related causes, a conclusion her spokesman said she drew from the initial autopsy.

“His lungs looked like the lungs of an 80-year-old person,” she said. “Whatever the immediate cause of death, the fundamental cause of death was his grave respiratory illness, based on all the reports that I’ve read.”

Detective Zadroga’s father, Joseph Zadroga, said he was pleased the bill was named after his son. “It’s an important issue because of the first responders,” he said. “They’re not getting the proper care that they should be getting.”

This is not the first bill named for the detective. A previous House bill, introduced in 2007, never came to a vote.

Gold9472

07-10-2009, 08:15 AM

Health guide for 9/11 kids is released, with one doctor critical

http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_224/healthguide.html

By Julie Shapiro
7/10/2009

The city’s new description of how 9/11 affected children downplays the serious health risks those children could face, one doctor says.

Dr. David Carpenter initially worked with the city to draft the document, which is designed to help pediatricians treat children who were exposed to toxins released with the destruction of the World Trade Center. But Carpenter said the city rejected many of his suggestions, and before the city released the health guidelines last week, Carpenter removed his name from the list of authors.

“The guidelines were continually watered down,” said Carpenter, the director of the University at Albany’s Institute for Health and the Environment. “They were minimizing and trivializing things we felt were extremely important.”

In particular, Carpenter wanted to highlight the cognitive problems children could face after breathing in the cocktail of chemicals suspended in the air after 9/11. Those substances, including lead and P.C.B.s, have well-documented effects on children’s development, Carpenter said.

But while the report lists the potential health effects of those chemicals in a table, a footnote downplays the evidence, saying the impact of exposure for children is unknown. Other sections of the report, which talk about prenatal risks and the reasons children are particularly vulnerable to toxins, use qualifiers like “may.”

Carpenter agrees with the city that far too few studies have been done on children exposed to toxins on 9/11, which is part of why it took the city until now to complete the guidelines. But since doctors know which chemicals were in the air, and the cognitive effect those chemicals have had in other contexts, it isn’t much of a leap to extrapolate that those effects could be present in Lower Manhattan children, Carpenter said.

Instead, the city’s guidelines devote most attention to respiratory illnesses, a well-documented effect of exposure. Behavioral effects, like difficulty concentrating and poor school performance, are listed in the mental health section.

“The city Health Dept. wanted to downplay what are very real concerns and issues around environmental exposures and pass off any effect as being psychological, as opposed to physical,” Carpenter said. “You can pass anything off as psychological. It’s just an easy out.”

Lorna Thorpe, deputy commissioner of epidemiology at the Health Dept., said the city’s goal is to raise awareness of potential health risks, but the city does not want to overstate what is known and cause alarm, Thorpe said.

“It’s a challenge,” Thorpe said of balancing the two concerns. She added, “I don’t think we’re downplaying the potential for neurological impacts.”

Thorpe pointed out that all of the potential health effects Carpenter mentioned are listed in the report. Thorpe added that the doctors who worked on the pediatric guidelines had a range of opinions about how to convey the information, and some disagreed with Carpenter.

Dr. Pauline Thomas, a pediatrician who worked on the report, said it fairly represents what is known.

“It’s a question of evidence,” said Thomas, who did a study showing that children exposed to the dust cloud on 9/11 were more likely to have asthma.

The neurological impact of exposure is less certain, so it makes sense that respiratory effects received more attention in the report, Thomas said.

The community has long been pushing for the city to release the pediatric guidelines.

“It’s terrific that they’re finally available,” said Catherine McVay Hughes, chairperson of Community Board 1’s World Trade Center Committee. “It’s unfortunate that it’s taken eight years…but at least the children haven’t been forgotten.”

The city previously released two versions of guidelines for the treatment of adults.

Hughes said that while the pediatric guidelines might not be as comprehensive as some had hoped, they still contain important information that parents and doctors should know. Hughes led the community board in passing two resolutions calling for the city to consult Carpenter, who specializes in children’s environmental health issues, when drafting the guidelines.

The pediatric guidelines represent a major step forward in terms of the city acknowledging 9/11’s impact, said Kimberly Flynn, head of 9/11 Environmental Action.

Shortly after 9/11, the Health Dept. released a bulletin saying pregnant women and young children returning to their dust-covered homes did not have to take any extra precautions. The new guidelines describe for the first time the extra risks those two groups faced, Flynn said, even though the language is not as definite as she and Carpenter would have liked.

The 14-page guidelines provide doctors with physical and mental symptoms to look for, including difficulty breathing, chronic coughing, aggressive behavior, new fears and extreme dependency. The guidelines also include questions for doctors to ask parents and children and information on referring patients to Bellevue Hospital for more in-depth treatment. The city has posted the guidelines online (nyc.gov/html/doh/downloads/pdf/chi/chi28-4.pdf) and mailed them to more than 30,000 city physicians.

Bellevue hosts the city’s W.T.C. Environmental Health Center, which opened a pediatric clinic at the end of 2007. The clinic now serves about 50 children and has expanded its staff recently with a pediatric pulmonologist and a developmental pediatrician. Dr. Joan Reibman, the W.T.C. center’s medical director, hopes that the new pediatric guidelines will raise awareness about the center’s program for children, which offers care for no out-of-pocket cost.

Reibman also helped the city draft the guidelines, and like Carpenter, she had some concerns about the details, though she declined to go into specifics. But she did not remove her name from the final version of the report.

“We think it’s very important that the guidelines do come out,” she said. “They were collaborative — everyone compromised to some extent…. One could always make things better or more perfect.”

Thorpe, the deputy Health commissioner, said the city could revise the guidelines as more information becomes available about the impact of 9/11 on children. The city is now reviewing data from a follow-up survey of children who are part of the W.T.C. Health Registry, and Thorpe hopes to publish conclusions soon.

Gold9472

07-10-2009, 11:01 AM

Honoring 9-11 hero

http://www.myfoxorlando.com/dpp/news/volusia_news/070909_Honoring_9_11_hero

SHAY HARRIS
Published : Friday, 10 Jul 2009, 12:37 AM EDT

PORT ORANGE, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35) - Anthony Incarbone was known around Port Orange for his ability to stretch a person’s body beyond their imagination. He turned a group of health conscious people into spiritually-mindful yoga students.

“That was just the type of person he was,” said friend Karen Leone. “Very giving and just committed.”

Leone credits Incarbone with helping her turn her life around after battling anxiety. Six months ago, Incarbone died from cancer. Leone and friends believe the retired fireman died from exposure to toxic dust after joining fellow firefighters in New York at the Twin Towers, immediately after the September 11th attacks.

“He lost fellow firefighters, and I think he felt it was just something he had to do. I think even if he knew what was going to happen to him, he would do it again,” she said.

He spent three months helping others at “ground zero” and eight years later, he died from lung cancer. He left behind a wife and four children.

“With his death, his pension also died, so they're not getting any financial support that they were getting before from his retirement. That's left them in a bit of a bind,” Leone added, which is why she and others are raising money in his honor.

“They can make donations for our silent raffles, or they can take the class. We're going to do a three set yoga class like a yoga marathon,” said Leone. “To me, and I think to everyone who knew him, he died because of a terrorist attack on this country, which makes him a hero.”

The event will be held September 18 -- what would have been Anthony Incarbone’s birthday --at Bikram yoga studio in New Smyrna beach at 4 p.m.

Gold9472

07-28-2009, 09:46 PM

GOP Disses 9/11 Responders

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2009/07/gop-disses-911-responders.html

July 28, 2009

WASHINGTON — First responders from 9/11 can accept if Republicans don’t vote for a bill to help ailing Ground Zero workers, but they say rudeness is another matter.

Several victims of the terror attacks who have become advocates on behalf of other ill responders say they were treated poorly when they called some Capitol Hill Republicans in hopes of getting them to back a measure coming up for a committee vote Wednesday.

“One office said, ‘Why do you people keep calling us? Leave us alone,’” said Charlie Giles, 41, from Barnegat, N.J. “‘You people?’ That is a disgrace from a congressman’s office.”

Giles, a Republican, said his rounds of calls — and GOP opposition to a bill to reopen the Sept. 11 Victims’ Compensation Fund — left him so angry he’s ready to denounce his party when he and other responders take a bus to the Capitol Wednesday.

“I’ll bring my Republican card, and show it to them,” he said. “If I have to tear it into a million pieces in front of them, I will.”

Giles, who was an EMT on Sept. 11, 2001, singled out the offices of Reps. Randy Forbes (R-Va.) and Thomas Rooney (R-Fla.), as did other angry responders. They said their reactions from other members of the GOP was better.

Spokespeople for both congressmen said they were not aware of any problems with callers, and insisted they provide unfailingly polite and helpful service.

In one instance, a spokesperson for Forbes thought an intern may have annoyed someone by offering to take their name and see if an appointment could be arranged.

“If someone felt they were mistreated, we apologize,” said Rooney spokesman Jeff Ostermayer. “Our office treats everyone who calls with courtesy and respect.”

Daily News calls to their offices were answered politely, but a worker in Rooney’s office said she couldn’t answer a question about the bill, and transferred the call to a Democratic committee office without saying that’s what she was doing.

“They were just cold,” said Glen Klein, 50, a retired city detective, “like you’re interrupting their lunch or something like that.”

Klein, of Centereach, L.I., spent nine months working at Ground Zero and is collecting Social Security disability.

James O’Connell, 50, an ex-Army man who recently survived a suicide attempt he blames on his 9/11 suffering, said he couldn’t understand the reception he got.

“They were at the very least, conduct unprofessional,” he said. “I don’t get politicians. I thought 9/11 was something that affected all Americans. I thought it was nonpartisan.

“I’m just baffled by the conduct of all these people,” he said, adding that it wasn’t just about his treatment on the phone that bothers him.

“There was such great unity in the country after 9/11 and I don’t understand why in 2009 people are dying and nobody cares,” he said.
- Michael McAuliff

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2009/07/gop-disses-911-responders.html#ixzz0Mbnmu1Hp

Gold9472

08-05-2009, 08:19 AM

9/11 cloud sufferers develop asthma

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5gYs9xmmpmPqQt0TT4oVlmqsqKRHA

8/5/2009

Thousands of people exposed to choking dust after the destruction of the World Trade Centre twin towers in New York have developed asthma, a study has shown.

They included rescue and recovery workers, neighbouring office staff and passers-by.

A follow-up study of more than 46,000 people caught up in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, found one in 10 had been diagnosed with asthma five or six years after the disaster. None of these 4,600 individuals had a previous history of the disease.

There was a strong association between exposure to the choking dust cloud generated by the collapse of the towers and asthma, the study found.

In total, 39% of all those who developed asthma had been intensely exposed to the dust.

The most affected group was 21,600 rescue and recovery workers and volunteers, 12.2% of whom became asthmatic.

More than 8% of the next worst affected group - September 11 passers-by - suffered the disease.

The study's authors, led by Dr Robert Brackbill, from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia, wrote in the Journal of the American Medical Association (Jama): "These analyses confirm that intense dust cloud exposure was associated with new asthma diagnoses for each eligibility group, including the 1,913 passers-by who only had exposure to the area air and dust on September 11."

Among rescue and recovery workers, asthma risk was highest for those attending the scene of the attacks on September 11. Risk diminished for individuals who started work at later dates.

Asthma risk was also associated with damage to homes and offices. People who did not evacuate affected buildings had higher rates of asthma than those who did.

Gold9472

08-05-2009, 08:20 AM

9/11 still causing new health problems

http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/43518/181/

By Emma Woollacott
Wednesday, August 05, 2009 06:40

New York - Intense, prolonged exposure to the World Trade Center attack is causing new health problems years later, according to researchers.

Robert M Brackbill of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, and colleagues at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and Columbia University examined the incidence of two of the most commonly reported health outcomes: asthma and symptoms indicative of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adults five to six years after the attack. They used data from the World Trade Center Health Registry, the largest post-disaster exposure registry in US history.

The researchers found that, overall, 10.2 percent of people with no prior history of asthma suffered from it afterwards. Thirty-nine percent of all respondents reporting postevent diagnoses of asthma also reported intense dust cloud exposure.

"These analyses confirm that intense dust cloud exposure was associated with new asthma diagnoses for each eligibility group, including the 1,913 passersby who only had exposure to the area air and dust on September 11," the authors write.

Of the adults without a PTSD diagnosis before September 11, 23.8 percent screened positive for symptoms. At the five-year follow-up, the prevalence increased in every group. Passersby had the highest levels of symptoms, at 23.2 percent, while residents had the lowest at 16.3 percent. Rescue/recovery workers were most likely to suffer from late-onset symptoms.

The researchers said that, applying reported outcome rates from the follow-up survey results to the approximately 409,000 potentially exposed persons, roughly 25,500 adults are estimated to have experienced post-event asthma and 61,000 are estimated to have experienced symptoms indicative of probable PTSD.

"Our findings confirm that, after a terrorist attack, mental health conditions can persist if not identified and adequately treated and that a substantial number of exposed persons may develop late-onset symptoms. Our study highlights the need for surveillance, outreach, treatment, and evaluation of efforts for many years following a disaster to prevent and mitigate health consequences," the authors conclude.

Details are published in JAMA.

Gold9472

08-05-2009, 04:23 PM

Support for Those Affected by World Trade Center 9/11 Attacks

http://www.nj.com/helpinghands/mhamorris/index.ssf/2009/08/support_for_those_affected_by.html

by Andy Germak / Mental Health Association of Morris County
Wednesday August 05, 2009, 10:55 AM

The Journal of the American Medical Association just released a study, "Asthma and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms 5 to 6 Years Following Exposure to the World Trade Center Terrorist Attack," concluding that the number of people reporting PTSD symptoms has increased over time - even 5 to 6 years after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.

It is now almost 8 years since the 9/11 attacks and some people are still dealing with related symptoms. If you are experiencing symptoms or know someone who is, The Mental Health Association of Morris County is available to help. I encourage you to contact us if you need help: 973-334-3496, Ext. 111 or email us at MHAMC@aol.com.

Following the 9/11/01 terrorist attacks, the Mental Health Association of Morris County took a lead role in developing Project Morris Nine Eleven, a communitywide collaborative effort to meet the needs to the victims and their families in Morris County. Though outreach and family support, we were able to provide and arrange for counseling, financial assistance, and employment assistance to restore the health and wellbeing of the affected residents of our community.

Today, the Mental Health Association of Morris County continues to play a significant role in disaster response. We work closely with the Office of Emergency Management and the Human Services Response Network in our county. We also maintain a database of mental health professionals who are specially trained in disaster response. In addition, we host quarterly meetings of the Morris County Private Practitioners Network, to help build the roster of disaster responders and educate mental health professionals who are in private practice about community resources.

Gold9472

08-05-2009, 04:23 PM

Dust exposure after 9/11 linked to high asthma rates

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/05/dust.exposure.asthma/

8/5/2009

About 1 in 7, or 13.5 percent of adults who encountered intense dust clouds after the collapse of the World Trade Center on September 11 were later found to have asthma, compared with just 8.4 percent who had no dust cloud exposure, researchers in Atlanta and New York City reported on Tuesday.

Among rescue workers, the asthma risk was highest for those who worked on the pile on September 11.

Likewise, among various groups of people connected to the Twin Tower collapse, rescue and recovery workers were more likely to have a diagnosis of asthma (12.2 percent) than passers-by (8.4 percent).

The results are from a survey, conducted from November 2006 through December 2007, to assess the health status of more than 46,000 adults five to six years after the disaster. Health.com: Bad air day? Here's how to survive

That such a horrific event left lasting physical and emotional scars is, perhaps, no great surprise. Among adults with no prior diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 23.8 percent have reported symptoms after September 11, and the prevalence of symptoms has increased over time, researchers reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

The mental health effects, which can be debilitating and often chronic, "seem to be the largest health problem coming out of 9/11" says Lorna Thorpe, Ph.D., the deputy commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Division of Epidemiology and one of the coauthors of the study. "But immediately after the 9/11 event, I don't think there was a clear understanding of what the physical impacts would be." Health.com: Is your child's asthma under control? Take this test

People in the vicinity of the collapse had "the potential to inhale huge amounts of particulate matter," observes Joan Reibman, M.D., an associate professor of medicine and environmental medicine at the New York University School of Medicine and the director of the school's Bellevue Asthma Center, who was not involved in the study. "We think that could act as a real irritant to the airways."

Some 23 million Americans have asthma, a lung condition that causes airway swelling and inflammation. People with asthma may experience repeated bouts of coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, and tightness in the chest.

Anthony M. Szema, M.D., an assistant professor of medicine and surgery and the head of the allergy diagnostic unit at SUNY Stony Brook School of Medicine, has studied the effects of the World Trade Center collapse on children living in Manhattan's Chinatown. His team's most recent study, accepted for publication in Allergy & Asthma Proceedings, will show that the rate of asthma at the closest elementary school to the World Trade Center (29 percent) is high compared with the rate of asthma in children in the general population. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 9.3 percent of U.S. children have asthma.

"[The new study] is entirely congruous with our findings," he says. Health.com: As a new mom, I struggled with my daughter's chronic cough

The CDC's Robert M. Brackbill, Ph.D., M.P.H., led the team of New York City and Columbia University researchers whose study examined the longer-term health impact of exposure to Ground Zero and its varying effect across groups of people.

The analysis is based on data from the World Trade Center Health Registry, described as the largest post-disaster-exposure registry in U.S. history. More than 71,000 rescue and recovery workers, lower Manhattan office workers, nearby residents, and passers-by enrolled in the registry.

Participants were interviewed from September 2003 through November 2004 to record their exposure to the disaster and document their pre- and post-event health status, and again in 2006-2007. Health.com: Diabetes plus stress can equal high blood sugar

For each group followed, intense exposure to the dust plume was associated with new asthma diagnoses. Among rescue and recovery workers, for example, the asthma risk was highest for those who worked on the pile on September 11. The risk diminished with later start dates.

However, even downtown office workers and lower Manhattan residents were affected. Among these people, the risk of asthma was highest if there was a heavy coating of dust in their home or office, compared with no such damage.

"It shows that people who had heavy dust exposure in the initial period, that this was a risk to developing asthma but not the only risk," says Reibman, who also serves as the director of New York City's World Trade Center Environmental Health Center, one of three centers dedicated to treating September 11-related conditions.

Reibman says the new study is important because, in addition to corroborating previous studies, it should help people with September 11-related asthma realize that their symptoms are real. Health.com: Managing the highs and lows of manic depression

"I think it helps us understand that there's a cause for many of these symptoms," she says. She encourages people to recognize their symptoms and seek a proper diagnosis and treatment.

Gold9472

08-05-2009, 04:24 PM

September 11th Charity Ball to Benefit Sick 9/11 Heroes

http://californianewswire.com/2009/08/05/CNW5181_154139.php

by National News Desk
published Wed, 05 Aug 2009

NEW YORK, N.Y. (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- The FealGood Foundation, a non-profit organization that advocates for sick and dying 9/11 Ground Zero First Responders, will hold the FealGood Charity Ball on Friday, September 11, 2009 at New Jersey's Trump National Golf Club Colts Neck.

"Eight years ago following the World Trade Center bombing, the watchword across the nation was 'We Will Never Forget.' Yet, for most Americans, the memory fades a little more with each passing day," says John Feal, president of the foundation.

"But the thousands of brave first responders who spent weeks sifting through the burning rubble of the collapsed buildings can never forget. The terrorist attacks have become a nightmare that is literally killing them. Seventy percent of those who served at the site are sick or have died as a result of their 9/11-related illnesses."

"It's an American tragedy that has gripped my heart," says Peter Grandich who along with the Spano Family Foundation is organizing the event. "Over 30,000 medical, police, fire fighters and volunteers who responded to Ground Zero are sick and our government has turned their back on these heroes."

In addition to raising funds and awareness, the night will also honor two elected officials and Grandich, all of whom have been staunch supporters of the FealGood Foundation. The honorees are Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney, U.S. Representative for New York's 14th District; Assemblyman David P. Rible, State Assemblyman serving New Jersey's 11th District; and Peter Grandich, founder of Trinity Financial, Sports & Entertainment Management Co.

The event, which has a star-studded celebrity guest list including many professional athletes, will feature numerous celebrity auction items like a day in the pits with actor/race car driver Patrick Dempsey, lunch and private tickets to a Yankee game with pitcher Brian Bruney, a foursome with NY Jet Jay Feeley and more.

A complete list of celebrities and auctions is available online at www.FealGoodCharityBall.com (http://www.FealGoodCharityBall.com) . The event will also include a golf outing at the exclusive, members-only Trump National Golf Club Colts Neck.

For ticket or sponsorship information to the invitation-only event, please visit www.FealGoodCharityBall.com (http://www.FealGoodCharityBall.com), or call contact Chairwoman Deborah Weiss at 908-670-9896 or email Deborahwss@optonline.net.

For golfer information contact James Spano at 732-947-8170.

All referenced product names, and other marks, are trademarks of their respective owners.

Gold9472

08-10-2009, 09:25 AM

Ground Zero first responder John McNamara, also aided Hurricane Katrina victims, dies of cancer

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2009/08/10/2009-08-10_ground_zero_responder_dies_of_cancer.html

BY Jonathan Lemire
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
8/10/2009

An FDNY veteran who worked tirelessly at Ground Zero and pushed for better health benefits for first responders died Sunday after a battle with cancer.

John McNamara, 44, spent 10 years with the FDNY and was diagnosed with colon cancer in the aftermath of his time at Ground Zero.

McNamara spent about 500 hours looking for his fallen brethren at the site where the World Trade Center once stood, and his plight was part of a documentary called "Save the Brave," which chronicled the lives of ailing rescue workers.

McNamara, who was assigned to Ladder 123 in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, also joined the FDNY's rescue mission to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

He became ill in June 2006 and the cancer spread to his liver and stomach.

Though gravely ill, he spent his remaining years fighting for better testing and health benefits for firefighters who worked at Ground Zero.

"We take comfort in knowing this hero no longer suffers," said John Feal, head of an advocacy group for Sept. 11th responders.

McNamara is survived by his wife, Jennifer, and 2-year-old son, Jack.

Gold9472

09-03-2009, 08:19 AM

You have to help us, President Obama, say 9/11 survivors

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/09/03/2009-09-03_you_have_to_help_us_president_obama_say_911_sur vivors.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
9/3/2009

WASHINGTON - Widows and survivors of 9/11 are demanding President Obama stand with sick responders - and champion a stalled congressional measure to help them.

Named after NYPD Detective James Zadroga, who died from inhaling toxins, the bill would pay for the treatment of Ground Zero responders and workers sickened by their post-Sept. 11 service.

But it's been stuck in Congress over fears about its cost.

After eight years, the people who responded to the worst terror attacks on American soil are getting tired of waiting while more of them die, and have written Obama demanding he act.

"Their deaths have left a void in our families and have left us wondering why our country, and you, Mr. President, have not done more to help the heroes of 9/11," the letter says.

The President, it notes, backed the legislation as a senator running for the White House.

"Since that time, we have heard nothing from you on this issue, and we are deeply disappointed," the letter adds.

The White House made no promises on Wednesday, but pointed out Obama signed into law a national day of service to honor 9/11.

"The President deeply supports our 9/11 heroes and their families and he met with several families earlier this year to offer his condolences and ensure they had an open line of communication to the White House," a spokeswoman said.

Construction worker John Feal, a signer of the letter who lost half of his left foot at Ground Zero, said he hasn't heard back, but he's more concerned about the legislation moving.

"I voted for the guy," said Feal. "I don't want it to be lip service. I want him to have the same passion for human life that he had for Cash for Clunkers and bailouts for banks."

Sponsors of the bill in the House had hoped to have it passed in time for next week's grim anniversary.

Gold9472

09-04-2009, 08:22 AM

Obama's 9/11 gift: Does the right thing and restores WTC health czar

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/09/04/2009-09-04_editorial__and_his_911_problem.html

Friday, September 4th 2009, 4:00 AM

President Obama yesterday performed a valuable service for the thousands of sickened 9/11 rescue and recovery workers. He reappointed the indomitable Dr. John Howard as World Trade Center health coordinator.

Howard was head of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health when President George Bush tapped him to lead government efforts to track what were then unexplained illnesses afflicting those who'd been exposed to toxic dust downtown.

Howard did his job, thoroughly and aggressively. After months of investigation, he became the first federal official to acknowledge that the debilitating ailments were both real and directly attributable to 9/11 service.

For his trouble, Howard was roundly punished in the administration. His budget was slashed, his authority was undercut and finally he was ignominiously fired from NIOSH over the Fourth of July weekend last year.

All because he had the courage to speak the truth.

Now, Obama has reinstated Howard at NIOSH - and at the forefront of treating and monitoring World Trade Center rescue and recovery workers all over the country.

This was a terrific step by a President who is being prodded by 9/11 widows and survivors to lead America toward meeting its full obligations to the sick through health care funding and a victims compensation fund.

There's much more to do, but Obama has given the ill a champion in John Howard.

Gold9472

09-07-2009, 08:07 AM

WTC Responder Fatality Investigations

http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/news/local_news/manhattan/090906_WTC_Responder_Fatality_Investigations

Published : Sunday, 06 Sep 2009, 7:51 PM EDT

MYFOXNY.COM - The New York State Department of Health is the data collection center for information on deaths among WTC responders, recovery workers and volunteers, regardless of how or why the death occurred. This data collection system will be used to identify and track all fatalities that occur among WTC responders so that science-based investigations of root causes can begin to be explored.

Through June 2009, 758 people who worked at the WTC site and have subsequently died have been identified. For each death identified, death certificates, medical records, autopsy results, employment information and WTC exposure information is collected. Confirmed causes of death are identified from death certificates, autopsies and/or medical records. To date, the program has confirmed 614 causes of death; confirmation of status as a WTC responder or volunteer may be pending for some of these people.

Researchers are beginning to compare mortality rates for the responders to local and national rates. These comparisons will assist in determining whether WTC responders may be at increased risk for specific causes of death. Any conclusions about mortality rates are premature until these analyses are completed.

Gold9472

09-09-2009, 09:07 AM

Time to rescue our 9/11 heroes ill from Ground Zero cleanup

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/columnists/gonzalez/index.html

Juan Gonzalez - News
Wednesday, September 9th 2009, 4:00 AM

"I knew right away they'd need ironworkers to cut through those collapsed beams," he recalled.

Picurro joined thousands of hardhats who showed up at Ground Zero that first night. They helped retrieve bodies, battle flames and clear debris.

Along with the cops, firefighters and other emergency responders, they were lauded as heroes then. Their selfless actions gave us solace and hope amid all that grief.

They did not know then about the toxic soup of chemicals in the dust and in the air. Federal and city health officials downplayed any danger at the time. They even dared tell the public the air was safe to breathe.

Now, Joe Picurro, 42, is dying. His family is destitute and his faith in our country's leaders has been shattered.

The list of ailments ravaging his body is stunning.

To begin with, his lungs are inflamed and scarred from a disease called sarcoidosis, so inflamed from all the tiny particles of glass and even human bone fragments lodged in them that every breath produces excruciating pain. His doctor has told him he has the lungs of a 95-year-old.

All the joints in Picurro's body are in constant pain. He suffers from reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS) and acid reflux, which produce periodic bouts of vomiting and coughing that become so violent his throat begins to bleed.

"Most mornings, when he wakes up, his pillow is soaked with blood," his wife, Laura, said.

Then, there are the seizures and blackouts. They started several weeks ago and are getting more frequent.

"I can't leave him alone in the house," Laura Picurro said. "The doctors say there's not much they can do for him now."

Her husband is taking 37 different medicines that cost nearly $10,000 a month.

This week, Hospice of New Jersey approved Picurro for treatment. The group will provide a regular nurse to help his wife for a few hours each day.

He gets workers' compensation for his injuries from the WTC Volunteer Fund. That covers his medical bills and gives him $500 a month for living expenses.

Like many of the thousands of sick Ground Zero workers, Picurro has had to battle for even that little compensation.

That's because he didn't realize his sickness was most likely related to his time on The Pile until 2004. So, he` missed the first deadline for filing such claims with the 9/11 federal Victim Compensation Fund.

He's been unable to work the last five years, and his wife must stay home to care for him. Picurro is battling to keep his home and provide for their 14-year-old daughter, Allison.

"She just started high school," he said. "My biggest hope is to live long enough to see her graduate."

It is probably too late to do much for him, Picurro acknowledged.

Our city and nation owe an enormous debt to his wife, Laura, and their daughter - and to all the other families of Ground Zero workers who are sick today or have already died.

They are victims of that horrible attack, much the same as the 3,000 who died that first day.

Yesterday, a handful of local politicians and labor leaders reminded us of that debt. Rep. Carolyn Maloney has been spearheading this fight for years. In February, Maloney and fellow Rep. Jerrold Nadler sponsored the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

It would provide permanent health treatment for all 9/11 Ground Zero workers and residents who become sick from their exposure to contaminants. It would also reopen the compensation fund for those who get sick or die.

The bill has made it through one House committee and is set for a vote in another subcommittee this month. The full House and Senate must still act.

"It's the least we can do as a grateful nation to those heroes," Maloney said. "I don't want to be back at Ground Zero next year without having this compensation fund passed."

Gold9472

09-14-2009, 02:53 PM

One year after Sept. 11 responders' plea for help, White House responds with thank you card

http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2009/09/12/alg_mcnamara_funeral.jpg

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/09/11/2009-09-11_one_year_after_sept_11_responders_plea_for_help _white_house_responds_with_thank_.html

BY MICHAEL MCAULIFF
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Friday, September 11th 2009, 3:15 PM

WASHINGTON - A group of Sept. 11 responders finally got an answer from the White House to their plea for help: a thank you card.

A year ago, members of the Fealgood Foundation delivered that plea to the future President and other lawmakers in a DVD telling the tale of four ailing heroes.

One of the four, Greg Quibell, had just died of 9/11-linked leukemia. Another, former FDNY firefighter John McNamara, died of cancer last month.

They wanted to show Congress why it must pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, an $8.4 billion bill to help ailing Sept. 11 workers.

But the act has languished. What the responders have gotten are thank you's, not just from the White House, but from members of Congress who also got copies of "Save the Brave."

"One congressman's office sent it back with a letter that said we're sorry, we don't accept gifts," said John Feal, who lost half his foot at Ground Zero.

Feal got the note from the White House saying "Thank you for your kind gift" last week.

Quibell's widow, Theresa, said the off-tone response was "disturbing," but would forgive it if the President delivers. "My God, at least take care of these guys now," she said.

Adminstration officials say Obama remains committed to those who answered the call on Sept. 11, and the days after. He reaffirmed his pledge Friday in the Daily News.

Congressional leaders insist they're committed as well, and the House could finish its bill this month - and vote by November.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan) blamed the glacial pace on the GOP. "The previous administration denied there was even a problem," she said.

Rep. Pete King (R-Nassau) called it a bipartisan disgrace. "This is a clear breach of faith by the government," he said. "This is the same as leaving people on the battlefield."

Even if the House passes a bill, the Senate has barely started.

"We have an undeniable moral obligation," said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who is sponsoring the Senate bill. "I am optimistic that with President Obama in the White House and a Democratic Congress we can ... act."

After eight years, 9/11's heroes are left with little more than thank-you notes - and pain.

"The only gift I've received was the gift of cancer," said former FDNY firefighter Kenny Specht, who battled the disease in his thyroid. "I don't need a letter thanking me for my gift."

New Yorkers want something more tangible.

"My son is dying," said Stephen Grossman after visiting his son, Robert, 41, in the hospital where the ex-cop is losing a battle to cancer. "Whatever passes through Congress will be too late for him. I hope it's not too late for other people."

Gold9472

09-18-2009, 08:03 AM

9/11 workers to get the benefits

http://www.empirestatenews.net/News/20090918-7.html

9/17/2009

ALBANY - Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D/WF-Yonkers) and Assemblyman Mike Spano (D/C/WF-Yonkers) announced that Governor Paterson signed “Jimmy Nolan’s Law”, extending the time that 9/11 workers can file compensation claims for injuries suffered from participating in the World Trade Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations.

“This legislation was crucial for hundreds of men and women who sacrificed their time and health at Ground Zero to help others during the aftermath of our nation’s most horrific attacks in recent history”, said Stewart-Cousins. “His signing now during this 9/11 commemorative period reaffirms his and all New Yorkers’ gratitude for the selfless acts of countless individuals during and after the tragic events of 9/11.”

“I would like to thank the governor for signing ‘Jimmy Nolan’s Law’ to ensure that New York takes care of the thousands of brave individuals who worked at Ground Zero,” Spano said. “Eight years after the World Trade Center attacks, the heroes who risked their lives to help our nation through its darkest hour will finally get the compensation they deserve.”

Jimmy Nolan’s Law” allows an additional one-year period for eligible workers to file claims to receive workers’ compensation. Under current law a worker has only 90 days to file a claim, but numerous “second wave” 9/11 victims – those who were affected by the hazardous dust and debris in the aftermath of the attacks– showed symptoms long after the 90-day time restriction.

The law is named after second wave 9/11 victim Jimmy Nolan, a carpenter from Yonkers and father of three. He was working in construction at NYU when he heard about the World Trade Center attacks and immediately rushed to Ground Zero to provide any assistance he could. He slept at the World Trade Center site for three weeks, and now suffers from wood and skin allergies as well as respiratory problems. He spends $200 a month on medications for these conditions.

Gold9472

09-25-2009, 12:47 PM

Thousands seek help for 9/11-related health issues

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hbFu_USPHXmnxTOR0tOnrbYrckcwD9AU1N4O0

(AP) – 15 hours ago

NEW YORK — A city task force on medical problems linked to the collapse of the World Trade Center says tens of thousands of New Yorkers have sought treatment or enrolled in a health monitoring program.

The annual report by the World Trade Center Medical Working Group was released Thursday. The report says nearly 16,000 people have sought out care at publicly funded programs for people with illnesses potentially related to the attacks.

Another 42,000 rescue, recovery and clean up workers were in monitoring programs.

But the report also found that there are people who aren't taking advantage of available medical services, including thousands of people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Gold9472

09-30-2009, 08:37 AM

Thousands of 9/11 workers can now sue over illnesses

http://www.newsday.com/long-island/thousands-of-9-11-workers-can-now-sue-over-illnesses-1.1486633

9/30/2009

Thousands of sickened 9/11 recovery workers whose legal claims have been barred because of missed deadlines can now join a massive group suing New York City under a law signed by Gov. David A. Paterson, officials said.

The law immediately allows more than 3,000 Ground Zero workers to revive lawsuits that were thrown out by a federal judge in July on the technical ground that they were not filed within 90 days of the workers' conditions being diagnosed.

It will also allow new lawsuits from an untold number of workers who never even filed claims.

One of them is Chris Klein, 38, a carpenter from Broad Channel, Queens, who worked for three months at Ground Zero in 2002 and is now on disability with a lung condition. Attorneys told him he waited too long after his diagnosis in 2004 and couldn't file a lawsuit.

"I put my life on the line to help the city and the state, and we were lied to that the air was good to breathe," said Klein, who said he also has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and chronic sinusitis.

Klein said he will now join a separate group of about 10,000 police, firefighters, construction workers and others who worked at or near Ground Zero in the months after 9/11 and who filed lawsuits seeking compensation for subsequent illnesses. They contend the government had told them, falsely, the air conditions were safe.

One of those laws requires most plaintiffs who are suing municipalities to file a "notice of claim" within 90 days, stating an intention to sue. Ground Zero workers have one year, starting on Sept. 16 when the governor signed the bill into law. It passed the State Senate and Assembly unanimously.

The law change was first reported by the New York Law Journal last week.

Marvin Bethea, president of North Bellmore-based 9/11 worker advocacy group, Unsung Heroes Helping Heroes, praised the law change but said he was more focused on reopening the federal Victim Compensation Fund that doled out billions until 2005. Workers would get money more quickly through the fund, he said.

New York City officials had urged Paterson to veto the bill, in part because they said it would hurt city efforts to reopen the federal fund. Officials also said the change was unnecessary because workers who are just now becoming sick can still file claims within 90 days of their diagnosis.

Kate O'Brien Ahlers, a spokeswoman for the city's legal team, the Corporation Counsel, estimated Tuesday that the new law would cost the city about $300 million.

Paterson spokesman Morgan Hook said the city's liability has been capped at $350 million. New claims, he said, would not make taxpayers responsible for more restitution.

State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers), who sponsored the bill, said most Ground Zero workers were not thinking about litigation when they got sick and should not be left out of a settlement on a technicality.

"I'm not trying to rewrite the rules, I'm just trying to right a wrong," she said.

For Klein, the law change is a small bit of good news as he struggles with his illnesses. Once a big, strapping carpenter, Klein said he now spends most days lying around his mother's house.

"I'm glad they changed the law," he said. "Hopefully, we're able to get what we deserve."

Gold9472

10-04-2009, 09:30 PM

'Ref' eyed in toxic 9/11 suits

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/ref_eyed_in_toxic_suits_20oU3iro2nCMs2gEG6c5RJ

By SUSAN EDELMAN
Last Updated: 2:09 PM, October 4, 2009

The judge tackling 9,500 toxic-injury lawsuits by World Trade Center rescue and recovery workers may appoint 9/11 compensation czar Kenneth Feinberg to try to mediate settlements.

While lawyers in the cases have yet to report any settlement talks, Manhattan federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein told them he'd like to recruit Feinberg or another top lawyer, Sheila Birnbaum. Each has agreed to serve as a "special master."

"The people who have suffered from injuries, they want to have a recovery and still enjoy a recovery," Hellerstein said.

Feinberg doled out $7 billion from the federal September 11th Victim Compensation Fund to families that lost loved ones in the terror attacks.

Birnbaum steered $500 million in settlements to 92 families that sued the airlines, calling the job "heart wrenching."

Hellerstein has scheduled the first trials for the sickest 9/11 cops, firefighters and other workers to start in May.

The city has so far fought the toxic torts, spending more than $200 million on lawyers and administrative costs. The money comes from an insurance fund awarded by Congress.

Gold9472

10-12-2009, 08:24 AM

Three heroes of 9/11 die of cancer in five days

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/10/12/2009-10-12_3_heroes_of_911_die_of_cancer_in_5_days.html

BY Stephanie Gaskell
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Monday, October 12th 2009, 4:44 AM

A firefighter and two cops who worked at Ground Zero in the days and weeks after Sept. 11 have died of cancer in the past five days, the Daily News has learned.

Family members and advocates are blaming their deaths on toxins released into the air after the twin towers collapsed - and they're urging Congress to act on a bill that would help pay for their medical care.

"Everybody is denying that this stuff is connected to 9/11, but it is," said Stephen Grossman, whose son Robert died of cancer on Friday at the age of 44.

Robert Grossman was a police officer in Harlem who worked at Ground Zero for several weeks after Sept. 11.

"He never once said he was sorry he went down there," Grossman said. "None of them walked away even though they all knew it was really dangerous."

The day after Grossman passed away, Firefighter Richard Mannetta, 44, died of cancer. And last Wednesday, 37-year-old Police Officer Cory Diaz died of cancer.

Firefighter John McNamara, 44, died of cancer last month.

"Unfortunately, it's just going to happen more and more," Stephen Grossman said. "I hope next week there isn't four."

Grossman said even though his son lost his battle, there are still many more first responders who are sick.

"This country just says, 'That's fine. We'll just wait another 15 to 20 years and you'll all be dead and we'll all be sorry,'" he said. "This country is better than that."

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act - named after an NYPD detective who died from his post-9/11 ailments - is still sitting in Congress, and Grossman and others are urging lawmakers to act now.

"These three deaths are proof that we need this bill passed today - not a year from now," said John Feal, founder of the FealGood Foundation.

The bill would provide $10 billion for medical care for hundreds of first responders who have since become ill. But doctors haven't directly linked these illnesses to the World Trade Center.

"The facts are indisputable," said Kenny Specht, 40, a firefighter who worked for the NYPD on Sept. 11 and was diagnosed with thyroid cancer three years ago. "This week alone proves what we've been saying is absolutely occurring."

Feal said the deaths of Grossman, Diaz and Mannetta in a span of five days is hard to ignore.

"How do you get this high cluster of serious cancer in just people that worked the pile? he said. "That isn't a coincidence."

Gold9472

10-13-2009, 08:09 AM

L.I. NYPD Officer, 9/11 First Responder Laid to Rest

http://www.1010wins.com/L-I--NYPD-Officer--9-11-First-Responder-Laid-to-Re/5427198

10/13/2009

NEW YORk (AP/1010 WINS) -- A retired New York City police officer who had been a first responder to the World Trade Center on 9/11 and was diagnosed with a brain tumor has been buried on Long Island.

About 100 police officers saluted Monday as 41-year-old Police Officer Robert Grossman's casket was carried from a Smithtown synagogue after services

The Rocky Point resident was diagnosed with the brain tumor in 2006 and died Friday. He leaves a wife and six-year-old son.

Stephen Grossman spoke after his son's service and urged that more medical treatment be provided for first responders. He believes his son's illness was caused by working at Ground Zero.

Gold9472

10-13-2009, 03:11 PM

Deaths of 9/11 front-liners renew talk of aid bill

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/10/13/2009-10-13_deaths_of_911_frontliners_renew_talk_of_aid_bil l.html

BY Adam Lisberg and Stephanie Gaskell
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
10/13/2009

The deaths of three 9/11 first responders in the past week is enough proof for Mayor Bloomberg that people are getting sick from working at Ground Zero.

"Probably - nobody's sure - but probably contracted during breathing the air down at the World Trade Center site," the mayor said yesterday after the Daily News reported that two cops and a firefighter recently died of cancer.

NYPD Officer Robert Grossman died of cancer Friday at the age of 44. The next day, Firefighter Richard Mannetta, 44, died of cancer. And last Wednesday, 37-year-old Police Officer Cory Diaz also died of cancer. Firefighter John McNamara, 44, died of cancer last month.

Doctors haven't officially linked the illnesses of dozens of first responders to the toxins at the World Trade Center site, but Bloomberg said the federal government needs to help pay for their medical care.

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act - named after an NYPD detective who died of post-9/11 ailments - would provide $10 billion, but has been sitting in Congress for years.

Bloomberg said time is running out.

"I think that it's just another reminder that we've just got to get Congress to pass the [bill] that would give us the money," he said.

Kevin Fenton

10-13-2009, 04:36 PM

Jon, don't know if you've seen this before:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14780344/Written-Statement-of-James-Zadroga-from-911-Commission-Files

It's something Erik found at the archives.

Gold9472

10-13-2009, 08:03 PM

Thanks Kevin. I had never seen that before.

Gold9472

10-22-2009, 08:03 AM

Eight Years on and 9/11 Clean-up Workers Still Coughing

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/24153/

10/22/2009

NEW YORK—It was the benzene from the burning jet fuel, mercury from the smashed fluorescent lighting, lead from the computers, and dioxins from the smoldering plastics that helped create the poisonous cocktail of dust that blanketed lower Manhattan in the days and weeks following the 9/11 disaster, according to Esther Regelson, a local resident and board member of 9/11 Environmental Action.

Her group, part of a coalition committed to the health of post 9-11 workers, gathered for a rally in Liberty Plaza on Wednesday. Workers and residents who had inhaled toxic dust from the collapsing towers of Sept. 11, 2001 held placards in three languages, demanding health care and compensation.

The theme of the event was the publication of a new survey, conducted by the 9/11 EA and Beyond Ground Zero groups, of 200 persons afflicted from 9/11 exposure. Many of them report being chronically ill, only five percent said they had recovered, and one-third saw no improvement. The survey calls attention to the lack of official oversight into those with apparent 9/11 induced health problems, particularly those who are not included in government initiatives.

Fully understanding the range and extent of the different health impacts for different groups is a tangled process which has not been given enough resources, organizers say.

The health problems of the first responders to 9/11 have been acknowledged by experts, but the scope of the afflicted is greater than that, they said.

For example, studies conducted by Mount Sinai Hospital-based researchers acknowledge that the effect on the human body of breathing in the combinations of dangerous chemicals sent into the air on 9/11 is an understudied field in medicine. The researchers write that such exposure may have "new and unexpected health effects."

Some of those who identify as among the afflicted shared their stories at the rally. Mariana Cuniga was one of the cleanup workers, among the hundreds brought in three days after the disaster to start vacuuming and getting rid of the dust. They worked 16 hours a day, seven days a week for Maxons Restorations, one of the subcontractors, she said.

For the first two months they were provided no gloves, masks, or protective equipment. They also drank water contaminated with the same dust, she said.

"I can't concentrate well, can't sleep well, I'm very depressed, and of all my friends one has died and one is very sick," she said after the rally.

"Eight years after the disaster we're all now very sick. We have different problems, but we're all sick and can't work ... No one is taking care of the problems that are afflicting us," she explained. "We cleaned the whole disaster area, now they've forgotten about us."

She said that she and her friends started to feel that things weren't quite right with their health in 2002 and 2003, but that the problems became more pronounced as time passed, and adequate treatment has not been provided.

Mariana said that her friend Marta Freire from Ecuador was put into hospital in 2007 and diagnosed with thyroid cancer; she was apparently still too sick to attend the rally.

Hospitals set up by a government-funded treatment and study program, including at Bellevue, Gouverneur, and Elmhurst, only treat certain symptoms currently identified as 9/11 related.

This neglects others, like cancer or neurological illnesses, said Kimberly Flynn, who helped write the survey and report. "Bellevue has to shove them over to some other place because Bellevue can't treat them for that."

Beside the limited scope of treatment, many of those identified as victims of the toxic dust, according to the survey, are unaware of the free government services anyway, and instead visit private doctors.

Zhang Xiaozhong, a chef, said he was one of them, and was unsatisfied with the result. He says he was exposed to pollutants from 9/11 while at the Jing Hua restaurant on East Broadway in Chinatown, where he works. "I went to the doctor, but he thought the symptoms weren't brought about by 9/11. He treated it as just a regular cough, or an inflamed throat," he said.

"But ever since 9/11 I've had a long period of time every year coughing, inflammation, and the doctor's medicine has no effect."

His child, two at the time, now also has respiratory problems, he said.

Zhang acknowledged that causality between the symptoms and inhalation of poisonous substances from the 9/11 disaster may be hard to fully prove.

"We know after it happened though," he said. "We didn't have these problems before."

Gold9472

10-23-2009, 11:25 AM

Help 9/11 fireman in cancer fight

http://www.strausnews.com/articles/2009/10/23/warwick_advertiser/news/8.txt

10/23/2009

Warwick — Roy Chelsen of Warwick is a retired FDNY firefighter who battled bravely during the terror attacks on the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. After reaching the 30th floor of the North tower, he helped save many lives, including those of his fellow firefighters of Engine 28.

Now he is in a race against time. He has multiple myeloma cancer and needs a marrow or stem cell transplant.

A tricky tray fundraiser to benefit the Be the Match Foundation will be held from 1 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 25, at Mid-Orange Correctional Facility, located at 900 Kings Highway in Warwick. Food, beer, wine, and soft drinks will be available, along with children’s games, music, and raffles. The suggested donation is $20. Kids will be admitted free of charge.

Donations of tricky tray baskets or prizes to raffle off would be welcome.

With the community’s help and a successful fundraiser Roy and his wife, Trish, will be able to fund more drives, according to organizer Sean Corrigan. More drives mean more chances that Roy and many others will find a cure.

For more information, call Corrigan at 646-489-6191, e-mail candscorrigan@aol.com, or visit www.halliganswarwick.com (http://www.halliganswarwick.com).

To become a volunteer marrow or stem cell donor, call Be the Match Registry at 1-800-marrow-2 or visit www.marrow.org (http://www.marrow.org).

Gold9472

10-23-2009, 11:26 AM

Heroism and horror: Detective James Zadroga's sacrifice at WTC must not be in vain

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/10/23/2009-10-23_heroism_and_horror.html

Friday, October 23rd 2009, 4:00 AM

The statement of NYPD Detective James Zadroga to the 9/11 Commission, excerpted in the adjacent column, should be a must-read for every member of Congress.

Zadroga's account was submitted to the panel in 2003. Less than three years later, he was dead at age 34, the victim of severely damaged lungs. A New Jersey coroner ruled that Zadroga had been felled by toxins inhaled in long hours of laboring at Ground Zero. The city's medical examiner disputed the finding.

What was beyond question is that Zadroga breathed in the same pulverized glass and concrete and the same burning chemicals that later inflicted respiratory and gastrointestinal diseases on thousands of rescue and recovery workers.

His name serves as the informal title of legislation that would provide federal funding for health care for the many 9/11 workers who are ill and reopen the 9/11 victims compensation fund.

The bill has been stalled in Congress for far too long. Tomorrow, sickened workers will rally, yet again, in the hope of winning action. Among other things, they will cite the deaths this month of three 9/11 responders in a single five-day period.

All were young - Police Officer Robert Grossman and Firefighter Richard Mannetta were 44, Officer Cory Diaz was 37. All died of cancers. The cancer death of Firefighter John McNamara, also 44, shortly preceded those losses.

Doctors are hesitant to link cancers to Ground Zero's poisoned air. Whether there is cause and effect is in no way certain. The illnesses might only reflect the cancer rate in the general population.

For years, experts have feared a second wave of illnesses - cancers - would emerge in WTC responders. The question of whether a new, deadlier epidemic is starting will take painstaking analysis. The numbers so far are rudimentary:

The state Health Department WTC Responder Fatality Investigation Program blames 249 of 454 deaths from illnesses on cancer. A study by the Mount Sinai Medical Center World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program described four cases of a blood cancer in people under 45 among 28,000 studied. That's four times the rate found in the general population. Some 600 of the 10,000 people in a lawsuit against the city and contractors involved in the cleanup downtown say they have cancer.

While no conclusions are possible, there are grounds for intensive study - of a kind that would be funded by a federal WTC program. Should a link be proven between Ground Zero exposure and cancer, the need for health care and compensation would rise exponentially.

To read Zadroga's statement is to encounter heroism that has faded unconscionably from memory, as well as a betrayal that has simply been unconscionable. His feeling of having been abandoned by his country is heartbreaking, as it must be for all the forgotten victims of 9/11.

Gold9472

10-25-2009, 10:27 AM

100 rally at Ground Zero in support of health care bill for first responders

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/10/25/2009-10-25_100_rally_at_wtc_for_health_care.html#ixzz0UxS6 o0qC

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/10/25/2009-10-25_100_rally_at_wtc_for_health_care.html

Jake Pearson and Christina Boyle
10/25/2009

First responders rallied at Ground Zero on Saturday, urging Congress to pass a health care bill for workers who became sick inhaling toxic dust on 9/11.

At least 100 people waved banners and American flags to show their support for the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, named after an NYPD detective whose death was attributed to post-9/11 ailments.

"John cared about two things," said Jennifer McNamara, referring to her husband, a city firefighter who died of colon cancer in September.

"He cared about seeing his son grow up, and he cared about other sick 9/11 responders."

Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) joined the protestors, demanding the lawmakers push forward with the bill.

"It is time we honor them not just with awards, but with the health care they deserve," Maloney said.

The bill would provide $10 billion for medical care for hundreds of first responders who have become ill since 2001.

Doctors have not directly linked their illnesses to Ground Zero.

Gold9472

10-29-2009, 08:18 AM

Help with HR 847- the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009

http://www.fireengineering.com/index/articles/display.articles.fire-engineering.health-and-safety.2009.10.help-with_hr_847-.html

Your help is needed!!! Please sign the petition at: http://www.petitiononline.com/HR847NOW/petition.html and pass it on....

HR 847- the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009:
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h847/show

Goal:
To get HR 847 on the floor of the House of Representatives and passed by Thanksgiving.

Strategy:
Gaining as much public support as possible, as quickly as possible, from Americans will allow immediate pressure to be put on the House of Representatives to put HR 847 on their weekly schedule for a vote.

Method:
Outreach through word of mouth, viral marketing and social media. Viral Marketing –particularly suited to email and the internet due to its immediate nature. It encourages people to pass on the message to colleagues, friends and family. Social Media Marketing- describes the act of using social networks, online communities (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace), blogs, wikis or any other collaborative internet form of media for marketing and public outreach.

Message:
Having lost over eight hundred September 11th first responders since that horrific day, we must act now as many, many more of our Nation’s Heroes are sick and dying due to the time they spent at the World Trade Center site. We would like to stress how important the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009 is to us, our community and America. It is time to get this bill to the House floor and passed so that those who put America first on September 11, 2001 are taken properly taken care of, now. We want HR 847 passed by Thanksgiving so that we, as a country, can properly thank the thousands who have given so much of themselves, so selflessly. We have lost over eight hundred September 11th first responders since that horrific day, we MUST act now as many, many more of these men and women are sick and dying due to the time they spent at Ground Zero.

Petition:
An online petition has been created as a means to allow the American public to quickly support and rally their contacts to support the goal:
http://www.petitiononline.com/HR847NOW/petition.html

House of Representatives- Contact Information:

If your Representative is on the list of co-sponsors (see list below), please contact them and ask them to help obtain our goal. If they are not currently supporting HR 847, please call them and stress how important the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009 is to you, your community and America. It is time to get this bill to the House floor and passed so that those who put America first on September 11, 2001 are taken properly taken care of, NOW.

The list of Reps and their contact information can be found at:

http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.shtml

Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi (202-225-0100)

Majority Leader of the House, Steny Hoyer (Maryland's 5th District- 202-225-4131)

HR 847 (http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h847/show) is sponsored by Representative Carolyn Maloney [D, NY-14] and co-sponsored by Reps. Ackerman [D, NY-5], Andrews [D, NJ-1], Arcuri [D, NY-24], Baldwin [D, WI-2], Berkley [D, NV-1], Bishop [D, NY-1], Bishop [D, GA-2], Brady [D, PA-1], Burgess [R, TX-26], Capps [D, CA-23], Carney [D, PA-10], Castor [D, FL-11], Christensen [D, VI-0], Clarke [D, NY-11], Cohen [D, TN-9], Connolly [D, VA-11], Conyers [D, MI-14], Courtney [D, CT-2], Crowley [D, NY-7], Dahlkemper [D, PA-3], DeLauro [D, CT-3], Dent [R, PA-15], Doyle [D, PA-14], Ellsworth [D, IN-8], Engel [D, NY-17], Etheridge [D, NC-2], Fattah [D, PA-2], Garrett [R, NJ-5], Gonzalez [D, TX-20], Green [D, TX-29], Grijalva [D, AZ-7], Hall [D, NY-19], Higgins [D, NY-27], Himes [D, CT-4], Hinchey [D, NY-22], Hodes [D, NH-2], Holt [D, NJ-12], Israel [D, NY-2], Jones [R, NC-3], King [R, NY-3], Klein [D, FL-22], Kucinich [D, OH-10], Lance [R, NJ-7], Larson [D, CT-1], Lee [R, NY-26], Lee [D, CA-9], Lewis [D, GA-5], Lipinski [D, IL-3], Lowey [D, NY-18], Maffei [D, NY-25], Massa [D, NY-29], McCarthy [D, NY-4], McCaul [R, TX-10], McGovern [D, MA-3], McHugh [R, NY-23], McMahon [D, NY-13], Meeks [D, NY-6], Murphy [R, PA-18], Murphy [D, NY-20], Murphy [D, CT-5], Nadler [D, NY-8], Pascrell [D, NJ-8], Pierluisi [D, PR-0], Rangel [D, NY-15], Rush [D, IL-1], Sarbanes [D, MD-3], Schakowsky [D, IL-9], Schauer [D, MI-7], Schwartz [D, PA-13], Serrano [D, NY-16], Sestak [D, PA-7], Sires [D, NJ-13], Slaughter [D, NY-28], Smith [R, NJ-4], Stupak [D, MI-1], Sutton [D, OH-13], Thompson [D, MS-2], Tonko [D, NY-21], Towns [D, NY-10], Velázquez [D, NY-12], Weiner [D, NY-9], Wexler [D, FL-19], Woolsey [D, CA-6].

The Bill:
James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009
2/4/2009-- Introduced.James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009 - Amends the Public Health Service Act to establish within the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health the World Trade Center Health Program (WTC program) to provide:
(1) medical monitoring and treatment benefits to eligible emergency responders and recovery and cleanup workers who responded to the World Trade Center terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001; and
(2) initial health evaluation, monitoring, and treatment benefits to residents and other building occupants and area workers who were directly impacted and adversely affected by such attacks. Requires the WTC program administrator to:
(1) implement a quality assurance program;
(2) establish the WTC Health Program Scientific/Technical Advisory Committee;
(3) establish the WTC Responders Steering Committee and the WTC Community Program Steering Committee;
(4) provide for education and outreach on services under the WTC program;
(5) provide for the uniform collection of data related to WTC-related health conditions;
(6) conduct research on physical and mental health conditions that may be related to the September 11 terrorist attacks; and
(7) extend and expand arrangements with the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to provide for the World Trade Center Health Registry. Authorizes the administrator to make grants to the Department to address mental health needs relating to the terrorist attacks. Amends the Air Transportation Safety and System Stabilization Act to:
(1) make individuals eligible for compensation under the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund of 2001 for harm as a result of debris removal; and
(2) extend the deadline for making a claim for compensation.

Gold9472

11-04-2009, 09:22 AM

9/11 rescue workers twice as likely to have asthma: new study

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/11/03/2009-11-03_911_rescue_workers_twice_as_likely_to_have_asth ma_new_study.html#ixzz0Vtf12qBa

BY Katie Nelson
DAILY NEWS WRITER
Updated: Tuesday, November 3rd 2009, 2:25 PM

Heroic World Trade Center rescue and recovery workers are twice as likely to be plagued by asthma, a study finds.

Up to 8% of Ground Zero responders, restoration workers and clean-up crew members have reported post-9/11 asthma, whereas only 4% of the population-at-large has the lung ailment.

What's more, about 3% of first responders said they had asthma before 9/11, but up to 16% were diagnosed from 2005 to 2007.

The research is based on the federally-funded World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program, which monitors 20,843 workers. The average time spent working at the attack site was 80 days.

The American College of Chest Physicians released the study Tuesday and blames heightened asthma rates on the "caustic dust and toxic pollutants" kicked up by the destruction.

"Although previous WTC studies have shown significant respiratory problems, this is the first study to directly quantify the magnitude of asthma among WTC responders compared with the general US population," said Hyun Kim, a Mount Sinai School of Medicine instructor and lead author of the analysis.

Gold9472

11-05-2009, 09:34 AM

9-11 first responders face asthma battle

http://www.14wfie.com/Global/story.asp?S=11444862

11/5/2009

(NBC) - The responders who worked so hard to save lives after the September 11 terrorist attacks may be facing a new battle.

Researchers found they were two times more likely to report asthma symptoms after the 9-11 attack, when compared to the general population.

Eight percent of first responders involved in rescue and recovery operations reported asthma attacks, compared to four percent of the population.

Gold9472

11-11-2009, 05:00 PM

9/11's delayed legacy: cancer for many of the rescue workers
A spate of cancer-related illnesses among New York's rescue services who worked at Ground Zero sparks fear of an epidemic

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/nov/11/cancer-new-york-rescuers

Ed Pilkington in New York guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 11 November 2009 14.36 GMT

A spate of recent deaths of New York police and fire officers who took part in the emergency operation at Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks has heightened fears that it could be the start of a delayed epidemic of cancer-related illness.

Five firefighters and police officers, all of whom were involved in the rescue and clear-up at the site of the collapsed Twin Towers, have died of cancer in the past three months, the oldest being 44. Three died last month within a four-day period.

Those three were Robert Grossman, a Harlem-based police officer who spent several weeks at the emergency site and died of a brain tumour aged 41; fellow police officer Cory Diaz, 37; and firefighter Richard Mannetta, 44.

In addition, John McNamara, a 44-year-old firefighter, died in September; and Renee Dunbar, a police officer in her late 30s, died in August.

The cluster of cancer deaths comes as Congress is under pressure to pass legislation that would provide federal help to emergency workers who have contracted illnesses since 9/11. Campaigners hope that a bill will be put to the House of Representatives by the end of the year that would set up a $10bn (£6bn) national fund for hundreds of people who now have cancer, respiratory illnesses and other diseases that may be linked to their work at the World Trade Centre site.

Up to 70,000 people took part in the massive operation at Ground Zero, including police, firefighters and construction workers who came to New York voluntarily from all over the US. Many worked for months amid a toxic soup of dust and chemicals.

Amid the pollutants within the giant pile of 1.8m tons of debris and the surrounding air were 90,000 litres of jet fuel from the two stricken planes, about 1,000 tons of asbestos that was used in the construction of the Twin Towers, pulverised lead from computers, mercury and highly carcinogenic by-products from the burning of plastics and chlorinated chemicals.

No official tally is available for the number of those who have died as a result of the 9/11 clear-up. The New York state health department has recorded 817 deaths of emergency workers but it cannot confirm categorically how many of those were directly linked to the site.

Federal funds for ill emergency workers ran out in 2003 and, since then, the onus has fallen on cash-strapped New York city, which is facing up to 10,000 claims for compensation through the courts. Families of those who have died say that the burden should be shouldered by the nation as a whole.

Robert Grossman's father, Stephen, drew a parallel with the $3bn the federal government spent this year on buying up old cars under the "cash-for-clunkers" scheme. "They spent that, but they don't have a dime for people who volunteered after 9/11 and ended up giving their lives for their country."

The 911 Police Aid Foundation, a group run by and for sick police officers, says it is helping more than 100 officers who worked at Ground Zero and who now have cancer. The group is receiving new cases at a rate of about one a week, many of which are extremely rare at such young ages.

Michael Valentin, who volunteers for the group, spent about four months working around the pile of debris from the towers. He now has lymphatic tumours in his chest, as well as asbestos poisoning.

"We all have terminal illnesses, we are all going to die. We just want to help others by showing them that they are not alone," he said.

The bill currently before Congress, which is named after James Zadroga, a police officer who died in 2006, would provide for the health monitoring and treatment of an additional 15,000 emergency workers. Paradoxically, it would not cover cancer, which was not perceived as a priority at the time the legislation was drafted though numbers have escalated since then.

Claire Calladine, a campaigner who runs the organisation 9/11 Health Now, said the fear was that the recent rise in cancer cases was just the start.

"We have only seen the tip of the iceberg. How bad will it get – that is the big question."

Gold9472

11-12-2009, 09:15 AM

Cancer deaths spark fear among 9/11 rescue workers

http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/world/03-cancer-deaths-spark-fear-among-911-rescue-workers-ss-01

11/12/2009

Recent deaths of New York police and fire officials who were a part of the emergency operations at the site of the 9/11 attacks has raised fears that it could be the start of a delayed cancer-related epidemic, according to a Guardian report.

In the past three months, there have five deaths of officials who had helped in the rescue efforts at the site of the Twin Towers. The officials all died due to cancer and were under the age of 44, the report stated.

The 70,000 people who took part in the operation worked amid debris fill of dust and chemicals. The report stated that surrounding the air were 90,000 litres of jet fuel from the two destroyed planes and along with the 1,000 tons of asbestos which was used for the tower’s construction.

Congress is under pressure to pass legislation that would provide federal help to the workers from the operation who have contracted illnesses since 9/11. Federal funds for those workers ran out in 2003 and New York City is facing up to 10,000 claims for compensation through courts.

An aid foundation set up for sick police officers is receiving about one new case a week, ‘many of which are extremely rare at such young ages,” the report concluded.

Gold9472

11-12-2009, 09:15 AM

Guardian Daily: The hidden legacy of 9/11
Cancer hits Ground Zero rescuers; the Glasgow North East byelection; and backlash against the Sun over Gordon Brown's letter to Jacqui Janes, in our daily audio show with Jon Dennis

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/blog/audio/2009/nov/12/guardian-daily-podcast

Jon Dennis guardian.co.uk, Thursday 12 November 2009 07.36 GMT

There are warnings of an epidemic of cancer among rescuers who worked at Ground Zero after the 9/11 terror attacks on New York. Stephen Grossman tells me about his son Robert, a Harlem policeman who worked at Ground Zero after 9/11. He died last month from cancer aged 41.

John Harris meets the candidates as voters go to the polls in the Glasgow North East byelection.

German football correspondent Raphael Honigstein discusses the death of Germany's goalkeeper Robert Enke, who took his own life after suffering from depression.

Media commentator Roy Greenslade explains why he thinks The Sun may have misjudged the public mood in its attacks on Gordon Brown over his handwritten letter to a bereaved mother of a serviceman killed in Afghanistan.

Supermodel Cindy Crawford talks to Hannah Pool about skinny models.

Gold9472

11-16-2009, 09:28 AM

9/11 workers, first responders to rally for help in D.C.

http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2009/11/16/alg_feel_good.jpg

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/11/16/2009-11-16_911_workers_to_rally_for_help_in_dc.html#ixzz0X 1pyDq9k

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Monday, November 16th 2009, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - First responders and Ground Zero workers are pleased Khalid Shaikh Mohammed is headed to New York to face justice - but they hope to win a different kind of justice of their own.

"Eight years later they finally bring the terrorists to New York and eight years later we're still waiting for help" treating 9/11-related illnesses, said John Feal.

"It doesn't equate," added Feal, who heads the FealGood Foundation, devoted to raising awareness about the health crisis. He will join busloads of survivors and victims for a rally Wednesday in Washington.

They're demanding Congress act on legislation named after James Zadroga, an NYPD officer who died from his exposure to Ground Zero.

The proposal would spend about $8 billion to reopen the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation fund to care for the illnesses suffered by the responding heroes.

"I'm going to be focused on getting that bill passed," said Glen Klein, a former NYPD Emergency Service Unit officer who spent 700 hours at Ground Zero. "It's time."

Advocates say they've received assurances that Congress would act this fall. But sources told the Daily News that the battle to overhaul the nation's health care system comes first - a fight that could extend into next year.

Feal said rallygoers intend to take their message straight to lawmakers.

"We're taking three teams into each congressional [office] building," he said. "I'm storming the Capitol."

Feal has sent letters to President Obama, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius pushing for meetings. But he's yet to get a response.

Gold9472

11-19-2009, 09:26 AM

9/11 responder Jim Ryan, dying of pancreatic cancer, misses Capitol rally

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/11/19/2009-11-19_911_responder_dying_of_pancreatic_cancer.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Thursday, November 19th 2009, 4:00 AM

It's time, Jim Ryan wanted to tell Congress Wednesday, as hundreds of his fellow Sept. 11 responders journeyed to Capitol Hill.

It's time for Congress finally to make sure the sick and dying heroes who answered the call are given the help leaders promised them in the days after the worst-ever terrorist attack on America, the 48-year-old ex-firefighter hoped to say.

He couldn't make the rally at the Capitol.

He's dying himself.

"I was a 46-year-old firefighter, working at my job in April 2006," said the husband and father of two teenage boys and a 9-year-old daughter.

His doctor thought he had gallstones, but it was pancreatic cancer, a deadly illness more common in older men.

The fire department eventually agreed the cancer was from 9/11, and he retired.

He beat it once.

Then came the relapse last November - and more treatments.

His doctor can't do any more.

"They just determined last week it wasn't working. As of right now, I'm not on anything. At this point, I'm just seeking second opinions," Ryan said.

He doesn't want to ask how much time he has left.

"I don't believe in deadlines," he said.

But he wanted to do what he could to push Congress to pass an $8 billion measure named after another of Sept. 11's growing number of fallen, NYPD Officer James Zadroga

It would reopen the Sept. 11 victims' compensation fund and provide for the families of the ill and dying.

So Tuesday night he packed some gear in the car of his friend and fellow firefighter, Keith Palumbo, and went to the Engine Co. 320/Ladder 167 firehouse in Flushing for a party that Palumbo arranged so Ryan's department brothers could see him again before it was too late.

"It was overwhelming," Ryan said.

But he got violently ill, and it was obvious to his friends that Ryan, who's lost 50 pounds to his illness, couldn't make the trip to Washington.

"Keith, he took my bag out of his car and he said, 'You're not going.' He said, 'You can't, you're not physically able to,'" Ryan recalled.

It's almost the way he felt about the months he spent digging through the voids in the wreckage of the twin towers, searching for the fallen.

He tried to explain it to his wife, Magda, when she asked why he wanted to swim in that toxic devastation for so long.

"I told her I don't. It's the last place in the world I want to be, but right now, and it's kind of hard to put it in words, but right now it's the only place in the world I want be," Ryan remembered.

There was no internal conflict about going to Washington Wednesday, except that he couldn't.

"I felt horrible because it's not only about me," he said. "It's about all the guys who are going to come after me, and there's going to be plenty of them. ... I don't think you've even seen the tip of the iceberg yet."

The Zadroga Act is sitting in Congress, held hostage by the health care reform debate.

The House version is all but ready to go. The Senate's has yet to be discussed in a committee hearing.

Palumbo and others carried the message for Ryan, visiting lawmakers in their black turnout coats.

He hopes legislators heard it.

"We've got eight guys in the firehouse who have cancer," Palumbo said after walking the halls of Congress, knocking on doors.

"Hopefully, we prodded them with our tale."

Gold9472

12-04-2009, 10:42 AM

Angry 9/11 responders: President Obama offers sympathy, but no support

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2009/12/04/2009-12-04_911_words_fall_short.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON - Angry Sept. 11 responders say President Obama has offered sympathy but no support for their appeal to champion their cause in Congress.

A group of 9/11 widows and rescue workers recently wrote Obama, asking his help to pass a bill that would fund care for ailing responders over the next 30 years.

Obama wrote back Tuesday, the Daily News has learned, saying he understands their plight and values their heroism.

"The individuals suffering health ailments from Sept. 11 and its aftermath deserve proper medical attention," the President wrote. "You served selflessly, and your concerns are of great importance to our country. I remain committed to supporting the heroes of Sept. 11."

But he left out whether he'd get behind the bill.

"It's a nice letter, and I will put it in my scrapbook," said former construction worker John Feal, who lost half a foot at Ground Zero. "But it's no more than a souvenir unless he supports that bill."

"We would have hoped for more," said Kenny Specht, an ex-FDNY lieutenant who survived cancer linked to 9/11, though he was glad Obama made a nod to the illnesses responders face.

The 9/11 health act stalled in the House behind health reform, which has since passed there. It hasn't moved in the Senate since Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand introduced it earlier this year.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi holds the key to progress in the House, but having Obama onboard "would be a tremendous help," said bill sponsor Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan).

Feal and Specht say if there's no progress by spring, they will shine a harsh light on Congress and the President, starting with a march from Ground Zero to Washington. "We will do a G.Z.-to-D.C. walk, a cancer survivor and a guy with half a foot," said Feal. "We will embarrass them."

A White House spokeswoman insisted Obama shares the goals of the bill, but didn't offer outright support for the legislation.

Gold9472

12-09-2009, 09:38 AM

World Trade Center Health Effects: Finding the Links

http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2009/12/07/world-trade-center-health-effects-finding-the-links/

Dana Farrington filed this report from City Hall.
December 7th, 2009

Impatience was contagious in City Hall today as three City Council committees heard from concerned parties about the World Trade Center Medical Working Group’s second annual report, released in September. Of particular concern was a bill, currently stalled in the U.S. Senate health committee, which would provide long-term medical care for those affected by the World Trade Center collapse — mentally and physically — and worries over which side effects would not be covered in the meantime.

Before the hearing, a man in a full Fire Department captain uniform sat quietly in the front row. The retired captain, John Gallagher, had arrived at the trade center site in the afternoon after the attacks and spent the next 30 hours on duty, followed by another three months of working full time at Ground Zero. He now has pulmonary fibrosis and breathes through an oxygen tank, which sat next to him inside a black rolling suitcase. Though he receives full funding for his medical care because the government has recognized the dust and other hazards at the trade center caused his illness, he said he had come to the hearing to fight for those who are not covered. Among his concerns were people with cancers, such as thyroid and kidney cancers, whose illnesses were not recognized under current coverage programs.

Councilmember Domenic Recchia raised his voice and temper over the report’s assertion that cancer is not directly related to the disaster. “I hope your next report says there is a link,” Recchia said.

In response, Tamuri Mammo, of the Office of the Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Linda Gibbs, stated that the only known study linking cancer to the World Trade Center attacks was “notable” and could spark further research but was not alone sufficient to prove that people exposed to the site’s hazards could get cancer as a result.

Also up for discussion was the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009, introduced by Sen. Kirstin Gillibrand in July. The council currently has a resolution drafted in support of this resolution, but it has not yet passed it. Councilmember Gail Brewer said she did not understand the cause for delay in care to those in need. “I don’t get it,” she said.

“We’re going to continue to fight for this legislation,” said Mammo, but he also mentioned that a bigger push would be needed after health reform.

John Feal, founder of the nonprofit Feal Good Foundation and a first responder who lost half of his left foot when it was crushed by a steel beam during clean up of the World Trade Center site. His group organized advocates to go to D.C. and “educate” legislatures about the issue and the resolution. Feal also worried that the resolution would not move until larger health reform takes place.

The newest report from the working group is a review of current literature and studies related to 9/11 health and the continued effects felt by people who worked at the sited or s nearby. The report states that the World Trade Center Health Registry, which has been following a sample of potentially affected individuals since 2001, found that 10 percent of participants in the study were diagnosed with asthma after 9/11. The report also cites evidence of “sustained and late-emerging post traumatic stress,” (nearly one in five had symptoms in that study). Furthermore, “Several newly published studies suggest that WTC-related mental and physical health conditions often can occur together, and in fact, 10 to 25 percent of people currently being treated by the WTC Centers of Excellence are being treated for both mental and physical health conditions.”

Gold9472

12-10-2009, 09:05 AM

Fealgood Foundation & NYCFFBH 9/11 Health Rally D.C. 11/09

Video
Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijaswLz2yT0) (GooTube)

The Fealgood Foundation and The NYC Firefighters Brotherhood Foundation traveled to The Capitol in Washington to hold a rally in favor of passing HR847 and S1334, The James Zadroga 9/11 Health Care Act. Many Representatives and Senators spoke, and the responders and their families visited congressional offices afterwards.

Gold9472

12-14-2009, 04:45 PM

Fealgood Foundation Christmas Message To President Obama

Video
Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QN3b3N9rmE) (GooTube)

At their annual Christmas party, The Fealgood Foundation appealed to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi to pass HR847, the James Zadroga 9/11 Health Act, and to President Barack Obama to sign it.

Gold9472

12-22-2009, 09:15 AM

Lung transplant behind him, chaplain blames 9/11

http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/health_med_fit/article_bf3f21fa-eea7-11de-92ea-001cc4c03286.html

Monday, December 21, 2009 9:00 pm

When the call came, the Rev. Tom Winslow did not hesitate.

Terrorists had destroyed the World Trade Center, and rescue workers needed the spiritual support of clergy.

So for one week in November of 2001, Winslow, an Episcopal priest and the chaplain for the Wisconsin FBI, ministered to rescue workers in an area of ground zero dubbed “the pit.”

Winslow was one of many clergy attached to federal agencies who rotated through ground zero. He remembers praying over a rib cage, the only body part left of one victim.

Now, eight years later, Winslow thinks the toxic air he breathed that week led to a life-threatening health crisis. He received a lung transplant at UW Hospital three weeks ago and was back Monday for his first clinic visit.

“There are a lot of people out there who are still victims of 9/11, and they are going to be showing up in a wave at hospitals in the years ahead,” said Winslow, 65, of Pewaukee.

At ground zero, he wore an air-purifying canister respirator at all times around his neck, he said. However, he breathed through it only when he traveled below ground, the common practice of those at the site, he said.

A 2009 report by the World Trade Center Medical Working Group says thousands of exposed people continue to suffer from chronic mental and physical health conditions but that a relationship between exposure and more serious illnesses such as cancer is unknown.

Winslow said he had no lung problems until after his work at ground zero, then suffered an asthma-like attack within a week or so. Serious sinus and bronchial problems developed, leading to pneumonia, gastric reflux disease, and, ultimately, lung failure.

Winslow said he has filed a workers’ compensation claim against the government but anticipates taking no other legal action. The government’s position, Winslow said, is that he can’t prove his lung problems are not a result of a pack-a-day smoking habit he maintained for 26 years prior to quitting in 1986.

Dr. Keith Meyer, medical director of lung transplantation at UW Hospital, said that despite the proximity of Winslow’s respiratory problems with his time at ground zero, “whether it had anything to do with it is nothing we could ever prove.”

Winslow, a longtime proponent of organ donation, now wears a “Donate Life” pin on his collar. Even given what he’s been through, he would answer the call again, he said, although, in hindsight, he would take more health precautions.

He professes not to be angry about what happened to him, just sad at times.

“I certainly haven’t suffered as much as Christ did, and I was just doing what he asked me to do,” he said.

Gold9472

12-23-2009, 01:39 PM

9/11 Heroes In Life-Struggle As Obama Signs Multi-Billion War Bill

(Gold9472: I hooked up Marina and John, so this is very cool.)

Video
Click Here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PgpHbIVA1s) (GooTube)

President Obamas plan to pump more than six hundred billion dollars into U.S. defense next year has outraged many Americans. Rescuers whose health suffered after working at Ground Zero say the government should pay for their medical care - not pour more money into war.

Gold9472

12-26-2009, 10:51 AM

Hero 9/11 first responder Jim Ryan dies of pancreatic cancer on Christmas Day

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/12/26/2009-12-26_really_great_911_rescuer_dies_of_cancer.html

BY Michael Mcauliff and Oren Yaniv
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Saturday, December 26th 2009, 4:00 AM

Sept. 11 first responder Jim Ryan did not make it through Christmas.

The former firefighter who spent months in the toxic rubble of Ground Zero succumbed to pancreatic cancer two hours into Christmas Day, his family said.

"He was just really really great," his widow, Magda, said last night.

The 48-year-old father of three, from Kings Park, L.I., was diagnosed with the disease in April 2006 and relapsed over a year ago.

The FDNY agreed that his cancer was 9/11-related.

He grew too sick to join a group who traveled to Capitol Hill last month to advocate passage of the Zadroga Act that would allocate $11 billion for those sickened on Sept. 11. The bill has been stalled amid health-care reform legislation.

"It's about all the guys who are going to come after me," Ryan told the Daily News then, "and there's going to be plenty of them."

Magda Ryan said her husband woke up Christmas Eve in good spirits, but his condition deteriorated and at 2 a.m., his 17-year-old son noticed that he wasn't breathing.

"We just wanted to stay home, we just hung out as a family," she said of how they spent this heartbreaking holiday. "We had our moments, some very very hard."

But they tried to recognize Christmas amid the grief. "Eventually," she said, "we even opened some presents."

Gold9472

12-27-2009, 08:51 PM

Death of 9/11 firefighter hero Jim Ryan overshadowed by 'flashier' Flight 253 terrorism story

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2009/12/27/2009-12-27_the_other_victims_of_911_li_firefighters_death_ and_the_renewed_call_for_bill_to_.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Sunday, December 27th 2009, 4:00 AM

They didn't find that out until early Christmas morning 2009, eight years later, when the firefighter's lungs finally overfilled with fluids, the side-effects of pancreatic cancer inflicted on him by the toxic dust he swallowed in hundreds of hours at Ground Zero.

Ryan answered the call of duty on 9/11, then went beyond, returning to the blasted ground for months. First, he hunted survivors, then victims, then just fragments of people - his FDNY brothers among them - whose lives and bodies were shattered that day.

He didn't realize how his own life was being shattered. Officials said the air was safe. He got cancer in 2006 that the Fire Department said came from the poison rubble. He beat it once. He couldn't beat it a second time, as a 48-year-old father of three.

On Christmas Eve, he tried to be himself, optimistic, helping with the morning dishes in his Kings Park, L.I., home as if he were not dying. By then, though, he had been off his cancer treatments since November because they no longer worked.

"That's just the way he is," his wife, Magda, said Christmas night, hours after her husband lost his final struggle.

That's the way most real heroes are, but there were no national headlines the next day mourning a hero firefighter's death, the way there were on Sept. 12, 2001, when 343 of Ryan's brethren met their ends.

The news yesterday was instead full of a botched airline terror attempt.

According to the reports, a young Nigerian man on a plane landing in Detroit had attempted to set ablaze chemicals taped to his leg. He burned himself, and achieved an effect like popping firecrackers before a passenger tackled him.

A flash and some smoke and some fear, and the whole world cared.

The suspected terrorist failed. He killed no one, unlike the monsters of 9/11, whose grim tally keeps climbing. Now including James Ryan.

He is a victim of the same killers who slammed the planes into the twin towers, the same killers who may be behind the Detroit flameout.

Yet for him, and for other recent 9/11 casualties like the NYPD's James Zadroga and the FDNY's John McNamara, our attention and care is selective. They didn't die amid the first flash and fire and fear, and are not being treated the same. Their families are not getting the help their predecessors in death got.

There is an answer. There is an attempt to make our nation care - a bill in Congress named after Zadroga that would spend $11 billion over 30 years to help Magda Ryan support her children as a single mother, and help thousands of other first responders, construction workers, clergy and volunteers who are ill and suffering the mounting effects of the worst terror attack in U.S. history.

But like the rest of America, Congress is distracted by flashier things. Those who responded on 9/11 - there are some 60,000 whose health is being monitored across most of the nation - are not a top priority.

The latest politician to put them on the back burner is New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone, who promised in September to bring up the bill in his subcommittee in October. He never did. The Daily News asked three times what happened. Pallone's office answered twice that they'd look into it.

We're still waiting, and so are the ailing heroes of Sept.11, and the spouses and children of the dead and dying, because Jim Ryan will not be the last victim of Sept. 11.

Gold9472

12-28-2009, 01:15 PM

Family's anger at FDNY's snub of wake for 9/11 hero James Ryan

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2009/12/28/2009-12-28_anger_at_fdny_snub_of_911_heros_wake.html

BY Michael J. Feeney and Katie Nelson
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITERS
Monday, December 28th 2009, 4:00 AM

The somber wake for Long Island firefighter James Ryan Sunday was filled with sadness and anger.

Upset that Ryan wasn't given a line-of-duty funeral service, Ryan's Engine Co. 320 organized an honor guard, bagpipes and transport vehicles on their own.

They said it was about respect for a hero who worked at the World Trade Center site for months after Sept. 11 and whose body gave in to the side-effects of pancreatic cancer on Christmas morning.

"I'm pretty bitter about it," said Ryan's brother, Michael, 50, of how his brother's death is being handled by the city fire department.

The family, including widow Magda and three children, has no doubt Ryan's death was related to 9/11.

"The doctors had no doubt," Michael Ryan said. "The people who were there that day were victims. They didn't hesitate. . . That's what a real hero does."

The FDNY didn't return calls about why Ryan was denied a hero's send-off.

Fellow firefighters said Ryan deserved a line of duty funeral with all the bells, whistles and family benefits that usually come with it.

"What the city is doing is wrong," said Keith Palumbo, 41, a firefighter with Engine Co. 320, as he walked into the wake at Brueggemann Funeral Home in East Northport, L.I. "This guy's family should have the honor and respect that everyone else gets."

He's hopeful for a large turnout for the funeral services slated for tomorrow.

"We want to embarrass the city," he said.

Firefighters union chief Steve Cassidy also blasted the city for ignoring Ryan's death.

"The New York City Fire Department has failed to acknowledge guys like Jimmy Ryan who have died," Cassidy said. "He's not the first and he's not going to be the last."

Gold9472

12-28-2009, 08:40 PM

9/11 first responders twice as likely to have asthma, researchers say

http://www.riskandinsurance.com/story.jsp?storyId=312470321

12/28/2009

First responders who were exposed to caustic dust and toxic pollutants after the 9/11 World Trade Center terrorist attacks suffer from asthma at more than twice the rate of the general population, according to a recent study.

Researchers from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine found that as many as 8 percent of the workers and volunteers who engaged in rescue and recovery, essential service restoration, and cleanup efforts reported experiencing post-9/11 asthma attacks or episodes.

Asthma is typically seen in only 4 percent of the population.

"Although previous WTC studies have shown significant respiratory problems, this is the first study to directly quantify the magnitude of asthma among WTC responders," said Hyun Kim, lead author of the analysis.

Researchers examined the medical records of 20,843 WTC responders who received medical screenings from July 2002 to December 2007 as part of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine-coordinated WTC program, which offers responders free medical surveillance examinations and targeted treatment for health conditions related to WTC work exposures. Results were compared with the U.S. National Health Survey Interviews adult sample data for the years 2000 and 2002-07.

"The significant chronic health problems associated with the WTC attacks only reinforces the need for stronger disaster preparedness plans as well as long-term medical follow-up for 9/11 responders and individuals who respond to disaster-related events," said Kalpalatha Guntupalli, president of the American College of Chest Physicians.

Gold9472

01-06-2010, 09:14 AM

Supporters Demand Medical Coverage For Victims Of WTC-Related Illnesses

http://ny1.com/1-all-boroughs-news-content/news_beats/111532/supporters-demand-medical-coverage-for-victims-of-wtc-related-illnesses/

NY1 News
1/5/2010

The names of more than 100 people who died because of illnesses related to the September 11th terrorist attacks, including first responders and cleanup workers, were read aloud by family and friends in Downtown Manhattan Tuesday.

The readings marked the fourth anniversary of the deat of New York Police Detective James Zadroga, the first 9/11 responder whose death was officially acknowledged to be the result of his work at the World Trade Center site.

People at the event called on Congress to pass a bill named after Zadroga, which would provide medical monitoring and treatment benefits for responders and recovery workers.

"Many came up to me today and said they had stage four cancer because of their work on 9/11. They were there for us. We have to be there for them," said Manhattan-Queens Representative Carolyn Maloney.

The congresswoman is a sponsor of the bill.

Gold9472

01-06-2010, 12:15 PM

Rescue workers rally at Ground Zero

http://www.northjersey.com/news/health/010510_Rescue_workers_rally_at_Ground_Zero.html

By MIKE KELLY
Tuesday, January 5, 2010

NEW YORK – They huddled in the winter shadows and the frigid air, this group of wounded veterans of Ground Zero, some of them leaning on canes or walkers, some breathing from oxygen tanks.

The father of James Zadroga is hugged by Bill Maher, of Maywood. Then, they read the list of names of the dead — all of them rescue workers and other volunteers who rushed, like them, into that smoldering place of terror on that sunny September morning eight years ago and breathed in too many toxins.

So far, that death list has 103 names but it will probably grow in the years to come.

There was Felix Hernandez. And Sandra Adrian. And Robert Grossman. And, finally, James Zadroga, the North Arlington kid who became a New York City police detective and then volunteered more than 400 hours at the Ground Zero clean up.

Four years ago yesterday, Zadroga took his last breath, his lungs blackened and clogged with Ground Zero’s dust and junk. He was only 34.

Here, yesterday, on a plaza only a few yards from Ground Zero, with the thump of jackhammers and the clang of cranes in the background, stood Zadroga’s father, Joseph, the former North Arlington police chief, fighting back tears as his son’s name was read

“It’s hard to believe four years have passed,” Joseph said, pulling his jacket close to his neck. “I still remember the day.”

Joe Zadroga is retired now and living in Little Egg Harbor where he and his wife, Linda, are raising their son’s 8-year-old daughter, Tyler Ann. Besides losing their son, James in 2006, the Zadroga’s lost James’s 29-year-old wife, Ronda, a year earlier to a heart ailment.

But the Zadroga’s tragic story is just one example of the long chain of suffering among Ground Zero workers.

Besides the 103 who have died so far, thousands more are in failing health. Which means that this is not just a story about health care, but a story about politics – and whether our federal government can find enough money to help.

Organizers of yesterday’s rally said they are hoping that the reading of the names of the dead will draw attention to the problem and pressure Congress into passing a new law, named after James Zadroga, to guarantee 30 years of health care and other compensation to sick Ground Zero workers.

But this is no easy task.

At yesterday’s rally, Ground Zero workers charged that Rep. Frank Pallone, the Monmouth democrat, was blocking the Zadroga bill in a health subcommittee he runs.

“He has the IQ of a soap dish,” said construction worker John Feal, who lost a portion of his foot at Ground Zero and has become a leading voice for injured workers.

In Washington, where he said he was tied up with legislation, Pallone cried foul.

“I’m 100 percent in support of this bill,” Pallone said in a telephone interview from his Capitol Hill office. “But the basic problem is that I don’t know if we have the votes.”

Feal and another injured Ground Zero veteran, Charles Giles, formerly of Garfield, say Pallone is bluffing.

“We’ve contacted every member of the committee and Pallone has the votes,” said Giles, who ran a private ambulance service and now takes more than 30 drugs to combat a variety of ailments, from asthma to congestive heart failure – all as a result of his more than 400 hours of service at Ground Zero.

“We’re sick and we’re dying,” Giles said. “We gave our hearts and our souls here. All we want is what we deserve.”

In Washington, Pallone insisted he is facing an uphill battle to help Giles and others like him. At issue, he said, is the proposal to make health benefits for Ground Zero workers an entitlement program, with a guaranteed $10 billion price tag.

But on the plaza near Ground Zero where the names of the dead were read, Pallone’s rationale – and political logic – seemed as frigid as the wind.

“It’s an outrage that we had to brave the cold weather to do this,” Feal said, his voice rising. “We’re not going to play dead.”

Standing nearby, Rep. Bill Pascrell, the Paterson democrat, listened quietly.

Sensing the potential political mess for fellow Democrats and his friend, Frank Pallone, Pascrell stepped forward and declared: “I will personally talk to Mister Pallone.”

“I don’t want to hear about the expenses,” Pascrell later said. “We will find the money to do this.”

“We do not want to be here for another anniversary of James Zadroga’s death,” added Rep. Carolyn Maloney, the New York City democrat who also attended the rally.

At the moment, Congress has been appropriating yearly installments for health care, most recently $70 million for the current fiscal year. Six hospitals – including the University of Medicine and Dentistry at Rutgers – offer free clinics for sick workers.

But there is no guarantee that sick workers will be covered as they get older.

Pallone said he wants a more permanent allocation of money and hospitalization. But he said some Congressional representatives – including Democrats – are balking, claiming that the problem is essentially confined to New York and New Jersey.

“I don’t want it to fail,” said Pallone of the Zadroga bill. “If it fails in my committee, it’s dead.”

The question of how to take care of sick Ground Zero workers has quietly lingered for several years on the fringes of political debates in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.

How should these sick workers be identified? And with others in the nearby community also claiming to be sick, should the number of people eligible for benefits be expanded? If so, how much? And for how long?

As the rally ended, Joseph Zadroga turned to walk away. He stopped to speak to a friend, Joe Picurro, a former Ground Zero iron worker who grew up in Palisades Park who now needs a walker to lean on and an oxygen tank to help his lungs to breathe.

“My lungs are so swollen that they rub against my ribs,” Picurro said.

Joe Zadroga shook his head.

“These workers did this for their country,” he said. “Yet their country doesn’t help them.”

Gold9472

01-08-2010, 10:33 AM

First Responders Want Aid for 9/11 Illnesses

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/27606/

By Jack Phillips
Epoch Times Staff
1/7/2010

NEW YORK—Four years ago this day, NYPD detective James Zadroga passed away. His death was the first 9/11 responder death that was officially linked to working at ground zero in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

A commemoration for his death took place near ground zero on Tuesday. Members of the 9/11 Police Aid Foundation, the NYC Firefighter Brotherhood Foundation, and the FealGood Foundation gathered together to read approximately 100 names of 9/11 responders who have died as a result of illnesses that occurred after doing rescue and recovery operations in the rubble of the World Trade Center.

One of the main reasons for the gathering was not just for the memorial of responders who died due to the aftermath of 9/11, but to support H.R. 847, the James Zadroga Health & Compensation Act, in the the U.S. House of Representatives.

James Zadroga was 34 when he died on Jan. 5, 2006, due to respiratory problems that resulted from doing about 400 hours of work near the remains of the World Trade Center.

“Our ranks are being decimated,” said Kenny Specht, an FDNY cancer survivor, who contracted cancer as a result of doing rescue operations at ground zero. “We are worth the 30 years of comprehensive medical monitoring this bill will provide for,” he said.

“We must pass this bill,” said one of the main sponsors of the bill, Democratic Representative Carolyn Maloney. The bill is “the least we can do” to support the recovery workers at ground zero, she added.

The bill gives additional health care to people directly impacted by ground zero like recovery workers, cleanup workers, and occupants who live and work around the site. Also included in the bill is compensation for individuals affected directly by ground zero. Currently, ground zero workers have not received any compensation from the government.

“I hope we can finally pass comprehensive 9/11 health legislation before any more names are added to the list of those who died from 9/11-related illnesses,” said Rep. Maloney.

One of the most recent victims of long-term health damage, FDNY firefighter Jim Ryan, died on Christmas Day due to pancreatic cancer contracted from working at ground zero for three months, reported Firefighter Hourly.

John Feal, chair of the nonprofit FealGood Foundation, said, “We're not going to play dead. We're going to fight.” The FealGood Foundation aims to raise awareness of the health problems suffered by 9/11 first responders. “While the moral compass points south in Washington, ours is righteous. We will continue to fight,” said Feal.

“I still have to answer to my granddaughter,” said former North Arlington Police Chief Joe Zadroga. “She asks me why did he [James Zadroga] have to go? He went because he felt it was his duty,” said Zadroga, who thinks there should be a “compensation fund for civilians” who suffer from severe health problems due to ground zero work.

Gold9472

01-19-2010, 09:23 AM

9/11 Health Care Bill Could Get Boost in Congress

http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/health/20100119/9/3155/

by Ari Paul
Jan 2010

Aiding 9/11's New Victims Advocates for those who became sick or who died from working at Ground Zero want aid from Congress and recognition from City Hall. 9/11 Health Care Bill Could Get Boost in Congress By: Ari Paul

There’s a type of wind that blows in off the North Shore of Long Island that is not only so sharp and cold it burns your face but also has enough force that if it hits you at the right angle, it can knock the air away from your mouth as you try to inhale. Just after Christmas, as firefighters gathered outside a Suffolk County church for the funeral of retired firefighter James Ryan -- who died from cancer doctors believe was caused by toxins he was exposed to while doing recovery work at Ground Zero -- the burning wind augmented another chilly reality for New York’s Bravest: Ryan was not the first front-line responder to die from a 9/11-related illness, and he will certainly not be the last.

Exactly a week later, many of those same responders gathered by the World Trade Center site to read the names of 9/11 responders and Ground Zero recovery workers who have died from illnesses related to their duty. It was the fourth anniversary of the death a another notable responder, New York Police Department Detective James Zadroga, whose name is attached to a bill in Congress that would establish permanent funding for health treatment and monitoring programs for 9/11 response workers and lower Manhattan residents, students and workers.

The medical centers treating the thousands of 9/11 responders as well as lower Manhattan residents and workers suffering from respiratory ailments and mental illness such as post-traumatic stress disorder survive on annual appropriations funding from Congress. Already a precarious situation, the financial crisis makes things shaker, which is why advocates are intensifying their push for a more reliable funding source.

Show Us the Money
The hold-up -- legislatively speaking -- is in the House Energy Committee. The bill has two parts. The compensation and health component was approved with bipartisan support in the Judiciary Committee on the former aspects terms, but the health subcommittee of the Energy Committee hasn’t voted on it, as its chair, New Jersey Democrat Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler, both Democrats, and Peter King, a Republican, -- say the votes are there.

However, it has been difficult for lawmakers outside the tri-state area to commit to it, since the measure carries an undetermined price tag. "I am more confident than I have ever been, but like anything it's never done until it’s done," Maloney said, noting that the Zadroga Act has the support of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The bill has had a complicated history among the various groups who support long-term federal funding. The main city police union -- the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association -- has opposed the bill’s current language because it does not specifically mention certain cancers. They have feared this means that members who develop those cancers would not be covered. Other police and first-response unions believed it is more important to pass the bill now and tweak conditions -- such as adding the cancers -- later.

Resident and worker groups such as Beyond Ground Zero have had similar reservations and also noted that the bill covered residents, students and workers only from Houston street to South Ferry in Manhattan. They believe that the coverage area should extend at least to 14th Street, of not higher.

Even if the activists can push the measure through the House, the Senate will be another story. If the health-care reform bill is any indication, the Senate is far more averse to government funding for health-care than the House. And the senator who had been credited with pushing for much of the current temporary funding, Hillary Clinton, is now secretary of state.

At the ceremony on the anniversary of Zadroga’s death, John Feal -- who heads a 9/11 responders group called the Feal Good Foundation -- showed his technique for passing the bill as soon as possible by displaying his chief weapon: a piece of Whole Foods pork.

"That’s how we get votes right? We give someone in Washington some pork," he said, citing the recent drive to pass the health-care reform bill by offering funding provisions geared to specific states. "So what I’m going to do is mail every member of Congress one these pieces of pork, and I'm going to put a 9/11 responder’s name on it."

Death and Glory
Meanwhile, the 9/11 first responders, their families and supporters face other issues as well.

Ryan’s funeral, at first glance, looked like the typically ornate send-off the city's fire department is famous for: the Emerald Society’s rendition of "Amazing Grace" and a salute by columns of uniformed members. But it wasn’t an official Fire Department event with eulogies from the mayor and commissioner. Those events are reserved for firefighters who die on or as a result of injuries sustained on their shift. Those who die years later don’t count, and 9/11 responder families take this as a snub.

Fire Department officials responded that while members who die long after 9/11 don’t get the official "line of duty" funeral, Ryan and many others did retire with a disability pension, meaning they get three fourths of their average annual salary for their last three years on the job, as opposed to half the salary, which is the standard benefit. In addition, they said, Ryan's family was virtually guaranteed a full death benefit.

But for many first responder advocates, including the heads of unions and fraternal groups, the pomp and circumstance matters. They have voiced their protests for people, such Paramedic Deborah Reeve, a dead Ground Zero worker whose death was designated an "administrative line of duty death." One activist joked that this sounded like she died from a paper cut.

There is a split between how the police and fire departments handle this kind of death in terms of memorials. Police officers like Zadroga, have their names displayed on the police department's memorial wall in lower Manhattan, along with cops who died on their shift, such as officers shot and killed by assailants. Ryan’s name, though, will not be affixed to the Fire Department's memorial wall at its downtown Brooklyn headquarters, along with the 343 FDNY members perished as the towers collapsed.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has the power to set a single standard for honoring uniformed responders who die in the line of duty. But he has said he won’t. "I think each agency has to make its own policies," he said at a recent press conference. "There are great traditions that go back a long ways in both these departments."

Uniformed Firefighters Association president Steve Cassidy said that after Ryan’s funeral, much of the media coverage treated his as a line-of-duty death -- more than had been the case for another responder who had died before him. This, Cassidy said, gives him hope that pressure has increased not only on Washington to enact the Zadroga bill but also for the city to give further honors to responders like Ryan.

"A sense of change is in the air," he said.

Gold9472

01-26-2010, 09:20 AM

9/11 Protest Hits Rep. Frank Pallone

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/pallone-rally.jpg

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2010/01/im-on-my-second-set.html

By Michael McAuliff
1/24/2010

Firefighter Brian McCauley died yesterday of cancer at the age of 42.

Today, his friends brought their grief and anger to the Long Branch, N.J., office of one of the congressmen who has failed to move legislation that would permanently help other people who sacrificed at Ground Zero.

“They’re turning their backs on guys like Brian,” said Larry Feilich, an FDNY dispatcher from the Bronx, who last saw McCauley about a month ago.

“I’m on my second set of widows,” said the Rev. Bill Minson, who offered counseling after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and finds himself doing it again and again.

Minson and Feilich were among dozens of protesters who targeted Rep. Frank Pallone for not moving a major part of the $11 billion legislation that would reopen the Sept. 11 victims’ fund and guarantee health care for responders who don’t have it.

Pallone heads the Energy and Commerce Committee’s subcommittee on health, which has jurisdiction over about $3 billion of the bill, which would cover 30 years.

Pallone had promised to bring that legislation up for action back in September, but he has not.

His office responded that it hasn’t moved because Pallone doesn’t think the measure will pass.

“The congressman is a strong supporter of the bill and is working to get enough support to vote it out of committee,” said spokesman Richard McGrath. “Right now there isn’t enough support and if we bring it up for a vote and we lose, it will all but kill the bill. The congressman is optimistic that we will get the support and the votes needed. This is an important cause that we believe in.”

“I don’t know what it’s going to take, but these people are not going to go away,” said Minson of the advocates.

“They’re dying every day,” said Feilich of the responders.

Gold9472

01-26-2010, 09:31 AM

Rally: U.S. must pay post-9/11 doctor bills
Protest outside Rep. Pallone's Long Branch office pushes for vote on bill

http://www.app.com/article/20100125/NEWS/1250345/1004/NEWS01/Rally-U.S.-must-pay-post-9-11-doctor-bills

1/26/2010

LONG BRANCH — Disgraceful. A tragedy. These were just some of the sentiments voiced Monday by community members who came to support 9/11 responders and their families seeking to pressure Rep. Frank J. Pallone Jr., D-N.J., to post a bill that would pay their medical bills.

More than 50 people gathered on the sidewalk in front of Pallone's office on Broadway, chanting "move our bill, move our bill, move our bill." Pallone is chairman of the House Subcommittee on Health, where the The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, also known as HR-847, awaits action.

"It is a disgrace," said Anne Marie Baumann, whose husband is a New York City police officer disabled by post-traumatic stress disorder and other ailments related to his work at Ground Zero. She held up a photograph wrapped in plastic and pointed to Brian McCaully, another police officer who was in his 30s but who died Sunday night of complications related to cancer brought on by his work at the terrorist-attack site. "These people came to help. It is a disgrace," said Baumann. "It really is. Brian's family lost their retirement, they lost everything to support their son."

Even with insurance, co-pays can be impossible to manage, Baumann said. For others, there is not even that.

If approved in Pallone's subcommittee, the bill could go to the full House for consideration. The act was named for late New York City Detective James Zadroga, whose death in 2006 was among the first linked to the World Trade Center site. Zadroga's family lives in Little Egg Harbor.

Protesters say Pallone will not make the bill a priority but the congressman said in an interview later that he is a supporter of it, that his delay is strategic: He only wants to make sure there are enough votes to approve the measure without last-minute amendments that could gut vital components, such as funding, or provisions that community members also be included in medical care.

"There is no disagreement," said Pallone, who wasn't at the Long Branch office during the demonstration. "The bill should pass and I will get it passed."

Pallone was unwilling to provide a date or a list of committee members who might not be supportive of the measure, saying they would be counterproductive.

"Obviously, I"m very supportive of the bill and would like it to move as quickly as possible and I don't want it to fail," said Pallone of the bill estimated to cost $10 billion and $12 billion over 10 years.

"I'm getting close," said Pallone of lobbying the subcommittee's approximate 40 members. "I've made a lot of progress in the last month." He noted some members seem disinclined to authorize a major entitlement program as they iron out the national health care program.

Pallone said it is not a question of "if" he will post it but "when."

Beachwood Mayor Ronald Jones attended the rally to express his support. He is the author of a resolution endorsed last November by the New Jersey State League of Municipalities supporting adoption of HR-847.

"No greater act of Congress could express the gratitude of the United States of America to those who entered a virtual 'war zone' without hesitation," reads the resolution.

Like so many others, Jones donned a light green rain poncho to brave the pounding rain and howling wind Monday. They said most of their rallies have been conducted in the rain.

"They are tears from heaven," said John Feal of New York, founder of the Feal Good Foundation, who as a demolition supervisor lost half a foot to a crushing accident at Ground Zero and now suffers from breathing problems.

He urged Pallone to do what is "morally right, not what the leadership tells you to do," and said he would meet him anywhere to debate the issue.

"They don't think we're serious," Feal said. "Today we make a stand."

"I can literally wring out my pants but that is a small price to pay compared to these people who are paying with their lives and their family's well-being," said Jo Schloeder of Wall, who said she has no connection to the 9/11 responders. "I'm just an American citizen and I think every American citizen should find it tragic. . . . When these people went to serve for days and weeks, they didn't stop to check first" how their medical bills would be paid. "They just did their duty."

The Feal Good Foundation, the New York City Firefighter Brotherhood Foundation Inc. and 9/11 Police Aid Foundation, representing first responders, blue-collar workers who assisted in the recovery operation, and widows, gathered yesterday in Long Branch. They say more than 300 have died from complications associated with the so-called "World Trade Center Cough" and other ailments.

Gold9472

01-26-2010, 09:32 AM

Protesters call on Pallone to move bill to help Ground Zero first responders

http://www.app.com/article/20100125/NEWS/100125092/Protesters-call-on-Pallone-to-move-bill-to-help-Ground-Zero-first-responders

By CAROL GORGA WILLIAMS • January 25, 2010

LONG BRANCH — Firefighters, police and widows of those called to respond to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks protested outside U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.'s office here Monday, wanting to know why Congress will not make it a priority to act on a bill to pay medical bills for those whose lives were upended that day almost a decade ago.

Some 50-plus area supporters of the bill braved a pounding rain and howling wind to demonstrate peacefully in front of the district offices of Pallone, the son of a retired police officer and chairman of the House Health Subcommittee.

Pallone, a Democrat, has the power to bring The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act to a vote in his committee, which could then send it to the full House for consideration. The act was named for late New York City Det. James Zadroga, whose death in 2006 was linked to fumes he breathed in working at the World Trade Center site. Zadroga's family lives in Little Egg Harbor.

First responders and their families who came to Long Branch today say they have waited long enough, as those present chanted "move our bill, move our bill, move our bill."

"I think it is a complete disgrace that these people who came to our rescue in our darkest hour are now being cast aside," said Jo Schloeder of Wall.

In a telephone interview later, Pallone described himself as an avid supporter of the first responders. He said subcommittee members may not be sharing completely with 9/11 advocates how they feel about the bill: while a staff member may report to a caller that the legislator supports a bill to benefit 9/11 workers, in committee meetings, the legislators may express reservations or may propose amendments that could gut the bill, such as passing the bill but without funding which would require a legislator to seek annual appropriations, which is how the issue is currently handled.

Pallone said he will post the bill when he has sufficient support to defeat any proposed amendments. "There is no disagreement," said Pallone. "The bill should pass and I will get it passed."

One of those protesting Monday was John Feal, a U.S. Army veteran, was a 43-year-old demolition supervisor when he responded to the World Trade Center site, the largest recovery operation in U.S. history. On Sept. 17, 2001, his foot was crushed when an 8-ton steel beam crashed down on it. Feal became an advocate for those whose lives were similarly affected by the attacks but were too sick, too weak or too broke to speak out.

With Anne Marie Baumann, the wife of a New York City police officer disabled by 9/11, they founded the Feal Good Foundation to provide support, lobby for relief and sometimes just to buy groceries so a 9/11 family could eat for a few days.

Feal said he has spoken to Pallone and he seems too busy with other priorities like the national health care bill to move the 9/11 bill for a vote, and that Pallone's priorities have been set by those over his head, such as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

But this is not the time to waver, said Feal.

"I issue a challenge to Congressman Pallone to do what is morally right, not what leadership tells him to do," said Feal, noting that even for those responders who have insurance, their co-pays are driving them to bankruptcy, with some taking upwards of 30 medicines a day to treat the so-called "World Trade Center Cough" and other ailments.

"They don't think we're serious," Feal said with incredulity.

At an April 22 public hearing on the bill, HR-847, Pallone said 9/11 sicknesses and how to pay for treating them was a nationwide problem, and that the clinic in his district -- the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment program -- was established in 2003 and was treating some 1,370 patients.

Even President Barack Obama in a Nov. 29, 2009, letter to Feal expressed his support that the nation should care for such workers. But previous versions of the bill never got out of committee and after a meeting and telephone conversations with Pallone, advocates aren't too confident about this one.

Gold9472

01-27-2010, 09:23 AM

9/11 responders urge action on benefits bill
Ralliers press Pallone to move bill out of committee

http://atlanticville.gmnews.com/news/2010-01-28/Front_Page/911_responders_urge_action_on_benefits_bill.html

BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer
1/27/2010

Despite the driving rain, more than 30 people rallied in front of Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.’s Long Branch office Monday to urge the congressman to move forward with a bill that would guarantee extended health care for 9/11 first responders and people who worked and lived near the World Trade Center.

Injured or ailing 9/11 first responders and supporters stood in a drenching rain to rally in front of Rep. Frank Pallone Jr.’s Long Branch office Monday.

KENNY WALTER The rally, organized by the Fealgood Foundation, urged the 6th District Democrat to move the James Zadroga 9/11 Health & Compensation Act (H.R. 847) out of committee to a floor vote in Congress.

“We are not deterred by the rain,” said John Feal, rally organizer and president and founder of the foundation. “We’ve been rained on for years.

“This is 800-plus 9/11 first responders in heaven crying on us today. We simply want a mark-up date. We will rally again and the sun will shine.”

Feal explained in an interview what the foundation’s mission is.

“At the end of 2005 I started the Feal- Good Foundation,” he said. “We do fundraisers and donate financial assistance, and we also advocate for 9/11 responders.”

According to the website, the foundation’s primary mission is to spread awareness and educate the public about the catastrophic health effects experienced by 9/11 first responders. In addition, the foundation provides assistance “to relieve these great heroes of the financial burdens placed on them.”

A secondary goal of the foundation is to create a network of advocacy on 9/11 health care issues.

“We not only advocate for ground zero workers, but show others how they can advocate for themselves and help others through grassroots activism,” the website states.

Feal is one of those injured 9/11 responders. After spending five days at ground zero, his left foot was crushed by 8,000 pounds of steel and he lost half of his foot.

“I’ve had multiple surgeries, all the way up to 2006, on both feet,” he added. “I had to fight for benefits. Those couple of years after I got hurt, physical and mental therapy are what saved my life.”

At the Jan. 25 rally, Feal explained that the foundation is advocating for Pallone to bring the bill to a vote by members of the House Subcommittee on Health, which Pallone chairs.

“A mark-up date is a date where the bill would go to the congressman’s committee,” he said. “One part of the bill already went through the Judiciary Committee.

“Congressman Pallone’s committee is the final step before the bill goes to the floor for a vote and to get it out of [the House of Representatives] and into the Senate,” he added.

In an interview last week, Pallone said there aren’t enough favorable votes to move the bill forward. But Feal disagreed.

“The yes votes outnumber the no votes,” he said. “We know for a fact that he has the support of his committee for this vote.

“We want leadership and we want a mark-up date,” he said at the rally.

Feal was joined at the rally by Gary White, of the 9/11 Police Aid Foundation, and Kenny Specht, of the New York City Firefighters Brotherhood Foundation.

Specht said the bill would cover more than 30,000 people. He also claims that Pallone has enough votes to move forward with

“One hundred percent of us want care, and we cannot get it,” he said. “Twenty votes are needed, and we have 26.

“Unfortunately, we are out here today … we have to remind this man that 26 is six more than what is necessary. There is no reason for us to be out here.”

White concurred.

“They are sick, they are dying,” he said. “We have enough votes. Twenty votes are necessary, and we have 26.”

However, in an interview last week, Pallone said he isn’t sure there are enough votes to move the bill out of committee.

“I’m trying to get the votes for the bill, but I’m not there yet,” he said. “Some of the members have problems because they don’t like entitlements.

“The cost of this is approximately $10 billion over 10 years,” he added. “We have to come up with a way to pay for that, which means a new tax.

“Some of the members are also concerned with the community part; they don’t mind providing the money to the first responders, but they don’t necessarily want to give an entitlement to the people that were working there or live down there,” he continued.

Pallone explained what the current health care system provides for 9/11 responders.

“Basically right now if you were a first responder at the World Trade Center or someone who lived or worked in Lower Manhattan, you can get health care and go to a clinic that the federal government set up in various places,” he said. “There is one in the Busch Campus at Rutgers and there are several in New York.

“Anything that is health-related, you get free health care and it’s paid by the federal government,” he added.

Pallone explained the changes under the proposed bill.

“What this bill does is say that it is an entitlement,” he said. “Right now we vote the money every year, just like what we do with the veterans’ clinic.

“We have provided the funding and we have provided care, but what they want this to be is a permanent entitlement, meaning they are guaranteed this care for the rest of their lives, and we don’t have to vote on this every year,” Pallone said. “I’m in favor of that.

“We are getting there, and I think eventually we will have the votes and we will be able to post the bill,” he said. “I don’t want to bring the bill up and have it defeated or have it amended.”

Feal explained the progress of the bill so far.

“In June the Judiciary Committee marked up one half of our bill, the compensation part, with a vote of 22-9,” he said. “That vote was supposed to be a lot closer, but I filled that committee room with 9/11 responders.

“In September he [Pallone] said he’d mark up our bill, and he never did, and in December he said it again and he never did,” he continued. “We were told we had to take a back seat to the national health care bill; we understood that, but we weren’t happy.”

According to Feal, the primary issue is that there are a lot of people suffering from not only injuries, but also severe illnesses.

“You can’t see all the illnesses in these men and women that are sick and dying,” he said. “This is a national crime against humanity, and those in power have responsibilities.”

Pallone said he has worked with the Fealgood Foundation for years and understands their position.

“They’re not happy,” he said. “They want the bill voted on immediately.

“Their fear is that 10 or 20 years from now they are going to have more problems and it is going to be harder for them to be activists.

“It’s legitimate, but we’ve got to make sure we have the votes.”

Feal said he will continue pushing for the mark-up, and if that is achieved, he will give Pallone credit.

“I expect him to give us a mark-up date,” he said. “I told his office if he gives us a mark-up date before the [Jan.] 25th, I would turn that rally into a press conference, I will hold his hand, and he will be our champion. I will make the man like Elvis in the 9/11 community.”

Feal said the foundation and its supporters will not give up the effort to move the bill out of committee and to a vote.

“If he doesn’t mark it up, then we are going to [rally] again in the near future,” he added.

Gold9472

01-28-2010, 05:26 PM

Obama Admin. Opposes 9/11 Health Funding

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2010/01/obama-opposes-911-health-fundi.html

By Michael McAuliff
1/28/2010

The Obama administration stunned New York’s delegation yesterday, dropping the bombshell news that it does not support funding the 9/11 health bill.

The state’s two senators and 14 House members met with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius just hours before President Obama implored in his speech to the nation for Congress to come together and deliver a government that delivers on its promises to the American people.

So the legislators were floored to learn the Democratic administration does not want to deliver for the tens of thousands of people who sacrificed after 9/11, and the untold numbers now getting sick.

“I was stunned — and very disappointed,” said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who like most of the other legislators had expected more of a discussion on how to more forward.

“To say the least, I was flabbergasted,” said Staten Island Rep. Mike McMahon.

The 9/11 bill would spend about $11 billion over 30 years to care for the growing numbers of people getting sick from their service at Ground Zero, and to compensate families for their losses.

The legislators were shocked the idea was falling lower on the administration priority list than other parts of the war on terror and financial bailouts.

“She made it clear that the administration does not support any kind of funding mechanism that goes into the bill,” said Bronx Rep. Eliot Engel.

“I think it’s fiscal restraint… but you know what? They find money for everything else, they need to find money for this,” Engel said. “We were attacked because we’re a symbol of our country.”

McMahon was furious that caring for the heroes of Sept. 11 would take a back seat to anything but military funding.

“I thought there was a complete lack of understanding of the issue by the secretary and quite frankly, I did not expect that lack of compassion and failure to understand the urgency of the issue.”

Victims and advocates of 9/11 families are similarly stunned.

Lorie Van Auken, whose husband died on 9/11 and who supports the White House in its push to try the terrorists in New York, was crestfallen at the news.

“I thought that these people would be taken care of. I would have expected better from this administration,” Van Auken said, adding that she thought it sends the wrong message to all of America’s would-be heroes that the government won’t be there for them.

“These people put their lives on the line to help people who live here and who were in danger, and now the government doesn’t want to support them,” Van Auken said. “What happens in the future when something else happens? Are people going to say, ‘No, sorry, I’m not going to help?’”

The legislators did hold out hope, though. McMahon and others said they would appeal to the President to consider adding 9/11 money to the list of mandatory items, rather than discretionary measures subject to the White House planned budget freeze.

Health and Human Servicices officials and the White House did not have an immediate response.

Gold9472

01-28-2010, 10:46 PM

Team Obama to double budget for treating 9/11 responders in an amazing same-day U-turn

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/01/28/2010-01-28_team_obama_to_double_budget_for_treating_911_re sponders_in_an_amazing_sameday_ut.html

By Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Thursday, January 28th 2010, 9:38 PM

WASHINGTON - The White House suddenly boosted funding for ailing 9/11 responders yesterday - pumping more government money into the treatment program than ever before.

Team Obama ponied up the cash only after outraging New York lawmakers with the news the administration won't back a permanent plan to help the dying Ground Zero responders.

The White House confirmed it will more than double the budget for treating ill responders to $150 million in 2011.

The abrupt reversal came after the Daily News revealed New York lawmakers were shocked Wednesday when Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the administration does not support an $11 billion permanent treatment plan.

"I was stunned - and very disappointed," said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

"To say the least, I was flabbergasted," added Staten Island Rep. Mike McMahon.

Family members were also infuriated by the lack of permanent support. "I thought that these people would be taken care of. I would have expected better from this administration," said Lorie Van Auken.

The delegation hopes President Obama will reconsider and put victims of the terror strike on a footing close to wounded soldiers, perhaps even funding the 9/11 health bill with the military.

"We are focused on strengthening the World Trade Center Health program and providing needed resources through the budget, and this administration will continue to be a strong partner to the New York delegation," said White House spokeswoman Moira Mack.

New York legislators were thrilled to learn of the one-year funding boost. "I am so pleased the administration heard the concerns of my colleagues and I," said McMahon, praising the belated payout during a tough budget.

But lawmakers still believe a permanent fix needs to be made so responders don't have to go hat in hand every new budget and political cycle.

"Sebelius made it clear that the administration does not support any kind of funding mechanism that's built into the bill," said Bronx Rep. Eliot Engel. "They find money for everything else, they need to find money for this."

Gold9472

02-01-2010, 09:02 AM

Wife of late 9/11 firefighter John McNamara 'heartbroken' over Obama's lack of support for plan

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/01/31/2010-01-31_bam_now_you_may_not_be_worthy_of_his_badge_it_w as_hubbys_dying_wish_but_widow_is.html#community#i xzz0eC22OCjT

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Sunday, January 31st 2010, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Jennifer McNamara wants to honor her late husband's dying wish and give the city firefighter's badge to President Obama.

Only, she's no longer sure she should.

Or that John McNamara, who spent 500 hours at Ground Zero and died last August of cancer at the age of 44, would think Obama still deserves it.

Her problem: She and her husband believed in the President, voted for him, and believed he would ensure the feds passed a law to permanently care for others who answered the call after 9/11.

She began having doubts in December, when key politicians backed away from promises to pass the funding. She went to the Daily News for help reaching the White House to explain her agonizing dilemma.

"I wish he would just support this," McNamara said of the President. "Then I could give him the badge in good conscience. I'd like to know that it's meaningful to him."

It means everything to her.

"There's something sacred about the badge to me. It shows that he achieved something in his life," she said. "He would disagree with this, but it shows he became a hero, that he dedicated his life to saving other people, to protecting our nation."

Jennifer learned Thursday the White House plans to spend $150 million on 9/11-related illness next year - a good thing, she said.

But the Obama administration doesn't support mandatory funding of an $11 billion, 30-year plan stalled in Congress that would guarantee care to all of the 60,000 people being monitored for potential illness.

"I'm really so disgusted. I'm so disappointed," she said. "I'm heartbroken because I think of how John would have reacted to this."

John wanted that bill passed not so much for firefighters, who have medical care, but for the volunteers, construction workers and other workers who do not.

"This is his biggest issue," McNamara said. "When he was at Sloan[-Kettering], he walked the halls looking for other 9/11 responders so he could talk to them, looking for ways to help," she remembered. "That's just who he was. He cared passionately about people."

While he was dying, he drew up a list of last wishes, even as he believed he could beat the disease and see his son, Jack, now 3, grow to be a good man.

"His last wish was he never wanted me to use the list," his wife, 42, said. "He wanted to live."

But he did not, and the Fire Department granted him a Trade Center pension a month later.

Some of his other wishes hint at the kind of man he was. He asked his wife, a lawyer, to get a community center built for the kids in his hometown of Blue Point, L.I.

He wanted Jennifer to scatter some of his ashes in Key Largo, Fla., Ireland, the Dallas Cowboys' stadium, Disneyland and Yankee Stadium - all places important to him.

His wife is working on all of them.

"He didn't give me a deadline," said the widow, who wears a tiny pouch of his ashes around her neck, the fulfillment of another final request.

But the simple, powerful gift of his badge to the President may be beyond her.

"It is the one thing on my list of John's that he asked me to do that, unless there is a change in the administration's position, that I will not," she said.

She still holds out hope, and the White House reaffirmed support for 9/11 families Saturday. She has a hard time imagining that a man like Obama worries more about the cost of helping the people who responded to Sept. 11 than he does about the people.

"My husband was an ardent supporter of his," she said, her voice cracking with emotion. "I don't know how I explain to my 3-year-old son that his President doesn't care about his father and others like him. How do you say that?"

She hopes she doesn't have to.

Gold9472

02-04-2010, 09:13 AM

Obama Ducks on 9/11 Bill, But Doesn't Say 'No'

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2010/02/obama-ducks-on-911-bill.html

By Michael McAuliff
3/3/2010

President Obama admitted today he’s not up to speed on proposed legislation to care for ailing 9/11 responders, and he didn’t commit to fully backing the measure — but he didn’t say no, either, as his health secretary did last week.

Obama was put on the spot over the 9/11 health issue — possibly for the first time — by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who raised the question during his meeting with Democratic senators this morning.

“Would you, today, commit to working with Congress to pass a comprehensive 9/11 health bill that’s fully paid for?” Gillibrand asked the commander in chief.

“I fully commit to working with you guys,” Obama answered, giving an affirmative at least to the first part of the question.

“Keep in mind, that our budget already significantly increased funding precisely for this purpose, so I’m not just talking the talk — we’ve been budgeting this as a top priority for the administration,” he said, referring to plans to spend $150 million on 9/11 treatment next year — more than double the last Bush administration budget.

But Obama also hedged on the $11 billion bill that would feature mandatory federal funding for ill responders for 30 years.

“I confess, Kristen, I have not looked at all the details of your legislation,” he said, misspeaking her name.

“I know that not only you and Chuck [Schumer], but everybody here, wants to make sure that those who showed such extraordinary courage and heroism during 9/11, that they are fittingly cared for, and that’s going to be something that we are going to be very interested in working with you on.”

The definition of fitting is what New York lawmakers are fighting the administration over.

Many of them were stunned last week when Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told them in a meeting that the administration did not support the mandatory funding scheme in the legislation that’s been stalled in Congress for years.

Advocates for the heroes of 9/11 want the mandatory funding to make sure that future leaders who are less sympathetic do not cut the program.

Gillibrand made the argument for the bill in her question, noting that people ill from 9/11 are spread across the country.

“These Americans hail from every one of the 50 states,” Gillibrand noted. “Now because of exposure to toxins from the collapse of the World Trade Center towers, there are about 20,000 people who are sick. Some of them are gravely ill, suffering serious health effects. Some are disabled. Some have died.”

We suspect many responders will be angry Obama didn’t go all in. But we also suspect legislators will see his answer in a more hopeful way, since he was not as adamant as Sebelius, thereby leaving the door open.

Gold9472

02-04-2010, 09:26 AM

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand corners President Obama on 9/11 first responders - and is rewarded

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/02/04/2010-02-04_gilly_corners_prez_bam_fully_commits_to_working _with_you_guys_on_aid_for_911_fir.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Thursday, February 4th 2010, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand scored a surprise concession on Wednesday from President Obama in the fight to do right for 9/11 heroes.

New Yorkers besieged the White House after Obama's Health and Human Services secretary declared last week the administration would not back committing $11 billion in mandatory funding over 30 years for ailing 9/11 first responders.

But the junior senator cornered Obama in a Q&A he staged with Democratic senators. "Would you, today, commit to working with Congress to pass a comprehensive 9/11 health bill that's fully paid for?" Gillibrand asked.

"These Americans hail from every one of the 50 states," Gillibrand said. "Some of them are gravely ill, suffering serious health effects. Some are disabled. Some have died."

Obama's answer cracked the door back open to the possibility that 60,000 people being monitored for 9/11-related illness could now get more long-term federal help.

"I fully commit to working with you guys," Obama said, admitting he was not entirely familiar with the bill that's been stalled in Congress. "I confess, Kristen, I have not looked at all the details of your legislation," he said, flubbing her name.

"Everybody here wants to make surethat those who showed such extraordinary courage and heroism during 9/11 ... are fittingly cared for, and that's going to be something that we are going to be very interested in working with you on."

New York legislators are planning to hold him to it, and were aiming to set up a sitdown with Obama on the legislation, sources confirmed.

But the President still seemed reluctant to embrace the bill, noting he had already done more than the last White House, doubling funding for treating ill responders to $150 million next year.

"Keep in mind that our budget already significantly increased funding precisely for this purpose, so I'm not just talking the talk - we've been budgeting this as a top priority," he said.

Advocates for finally caring for Sept. 11's heroes were cautiously optimistic after a rally at Ground Zero yesterday demanding the White House listen.

"The fact that we have his attention and that it is now in his dialogue is a good thing," said John Feal, who set up the rally with responders and widows whose husbands have died since 9/11.

Obama's talk with Democrats didn't just offer Gillibrand a chance to shine. Other endangered senators got to ask questions, too, but the White House insisted the give-and-take wasn't scripted.

Obama warned his Senate allies against becoming timid after losing their 60-vote majority. "If anybody is searching for a lesson from Massachusetts," he said, "I promise you the answer is not to do nothing."

Gold9472

02-05-2010, 08:48 AM

9/11 health advocates press Obama on campaign promise

http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_354/911health.html

By Julie Shapiro
2/5/2010

President Barack Obama inched back toward neutral ground on the 9/11 health bill Wednesday, but he still would not commit to supporting it.

The Obama administration’s opposition of the bill last week and Obama’s vague comments Wednesday came in stark contrast to a promise his campaign made to Downtown Express in 2008.

One month before Obama was elected, Blake Zeff, Obama’s New York communications director, told Downtown Express unequivocally that Obama supported the House of Representatives’ 9/11 health bill.

“Yes, Obama does support the bill,” Zeff wrote in an e-mail on Oct. 2, 2008. Downtown Express was the first and likely the only news organization to report on Obama’s position before the election.

The bills now under consideration in the House and Senate are slightly different than the ’08 version, but the fundamentals are the same.

Since ’08, Obama had not said much publicly about the $11 billion bill. Conventional wisdom was that Obama would not move on the 9/11 health bill until he got his broader healthcare bill passed, but local elected officials did not doubt Obama’s support.

But then last Thursday, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius surprised New York’s Congressional delegation by saying that the administration would not back the 9/11 health bill because it has an open-ended funding mechanism, promising to meet the needs of all those who are sick. The bill would reopen the 9/11 victims’ compensation fund, providing free healthcare to first responders and Lower Manhattan residents, students and office workers who can demonstrate that their illnesses were caused by their exposure to toxic chemicals and dust on 9/11. The ’08 version of the bill, which Obama supported during the campaign, had the same funding mechanism as the current bill.

New York’s delegation, including Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand and Reps. Carolyn Maloney and Jerrold Nadler, criticized the Obama administration for reversing its position on the bill, and local community health activists followed suit.

“The take-away message is: If there’s a terrorist attack in your neighborhood…you will not be taken care of,” said Catherine McVay Hughes, vice chairperson of Community Board 1.

“It sent a shockwave through all of the groups working on this issue,” added Kimberly Flynn, head of 9/11 Environmental Action. “People are feeling totally betrayed.”

Obama quickly stepped in and doubled next year’s federal allocation for 9/11 health to $150 million, but Hughes and others said the funding boost was not enough. The health advocates want a guaranteed stream of money for those who are sick, so they do not have to fight for funding every year and gamble on a sympathetic Congress and president.

On Wednesday, Gillibrand took the opportunity to directly question Obama about the health bill when he met with Democratic senators.

Obama replied that he was committed to working with Gillibrand on the 9/11 health issues.

“I’m not just talking the talk,” Obama said, according to a White House transcript. “We’ve been budgeting this as a top priority for the administration.”

However, Obama also confessed that he had not read the legislation, and it was not clear whether his comments referred only to first responders or to Lower Manhattan residents, students and office workers as well.

Obama has taken a personal role in Gillibrand’s reelection campaign, persuading at least one potential Democratic primary opponent not to join the race. Gillibrand did not press Obama on the 9/11 health bill after his general response, according to the transcript.

Moira Mack, a White House spokesperson, added in an e-mailed statement to Downtown Express that the president “remains fully committed to ensuring that our rescue and recovery workers, residents, students and others suffering the health consequences related to the World Trade Center disaster get the health care and monitoring they need.”

Before the 9/11 health issues sprang back into the limelight last Thurs., Jan. 28, local activists met with Maloney’s staff on Jan. 27. They were concerned that the community portion of the health bill could disappear during negotiations.

“Nine-eleven was like a war, and I look at the whole community like victims of war that have to be protected,” said Marilena Christodoulou, who was president of Stuyvesant High School’s parent association on 9/11. Christodoulou told Maloney’s office that many children developed respiratory problems when Stuyvesant reopened in October 2001, with the fires at ground zero still burning. She said about a dozen former Stuyvesant students and teachers now have cancer.

Spokespersons for Maloney and Nadler said this week that the Congressmembers would fight for the community allocations to stay in the bill. But some activists are still worried, especially after Maloney issued a statement this week that referred only to first responders.

The absence of guaranteed federal funding can be a problem for the groups that rely on that money to treat 9/11 patients.

“It makes everything more of a challenge,” said Terry Miles, executive director of the W.T.C. Environmental Health Center.

Without a steady funding stream, it is harder to attract and retain staff, he said. The center, based at Bellevue Hospital with two satellites, has treated 4,500 residents, students and office workers, many of whom have respiratory illnesses.

Miles was glad Obama had allocated $150 million to 9/11 health for 2011, though he was not sure how much the Bellevue program could receive. He was also glad to hear of Obama’s more neutral comments on the 9/11 health legislation on Wednesday.

“This is one more reason to feel encouraged,” he said.

Gold9472

02-05-2010, 08:49 AM

Future of 9/11 Health Bill Still Uncertain

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/content/view/29075/

By Joshua Philipp
Epoch Times Staff
2/4/2010

NEW YORK—The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act still has not been looked at in detail by Obama, the president admitted on Feb. 3. He then added that the administration is “interested in working” in assuring that those whose health was affected by the attacks are properly cared for, yet did not say whether the bill would be passed.

The $11 billion bill would ensure health care coverage over the next 30 years for all people who contracted illnesses working at Ground Zero. It would also provide compensation to families who lost loved ones in the attack.

The bill is still floating in the House and Senate.

During a meeting with Democratic senators on Wednesday morning, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand asked Obama whether he would pass a “comprehensive 9/11 health bill that’s fully paid for.”

Obama responded by pointing out that his administration has more than doubled the funds for treatment of 9/11 victims by providing $150 million over the next year. He then added that he has “not looked at all the details” of the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

Obama added, “But everybody here wants to make sure that those who showed such extraordinary courage and heroism during 9/11, that they are fittingly cared for and that’s going to be something that we are going to be very interested in working with you on,” according to NY Daily News.

Following the attacks on the World Trade Center, a cloud of dust and smoke reached more than 1,000 feet high and engulfed Lower Manhattan. Wind then carried the cloud of asbestos, cement, and a cocktail of other materials south into Brooklyn and Staten Island.

The aftermath of the attacks was a disaster in itself, and emergency responders, cleanup and recovery teams, and even pedestrians were affected. More than 400,000 people are believed to have been exposed to the toxins. Close to 16,000 responders and 2,700 others are currently sick and receiving treatment.

Another 40,000 responders are being monitored for health problems, and 71,000 people are enrolled in the WTC Health Registry.

Among the victims is John Feal, president and founder of the FealGood Foundation which is working to get health care for 9/11 victims. He was part of the clean up and was one of the recovery workers at Ground Zero the day after the attacks. While working, his left foot was crushed by an 8,000 pound piece of steel, which put him in the hospital for 11 weeks.

“But I was lucky,” said Feal “I got hurt, I didn’t get sick.”

At the same time Obama made his statement in Washington on Wednesday, Feal and other victims of 9/11 were holding a press conference in Manhattan. They were protesting a previous statement made by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius that the administration does not support the bill.

Although Obama did not say the bill would be passed, Feal said he is still hopeful.

“I think he’s wavering,” said Feal. “I believe the president is going to do the right thing.”

Obama sent Feal a letter in Nov. 2009, saying that he supports providing health care to the responders. Feal said he believes “the last administration let us down,” and hopes the current one does not do the same.

Feal added, “I got half a foot, one kidney, and I’m on disability. If I can help them, the President should too.”

Gold9472

02-09-2010, 10:28 AM

Tensions erupt around 9/11 responders bill

http://nyunews.com/news/2010/02/07/8wtc/

by Jaywon Choe
Published February 8, 2010

Sept. 11 responders and government agencies may finally have reached a settlement to avoid a May 16 court date.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein, who is presiding over the case, said at a Jan. 21 hearing that settlements for individual cases as well as class actions suits are possible.

Lawsuits have been brought against nearly 100 government agencies by more than 9,000 Sept. 11 responders, suing over injuries and illnesses they claim to have sustained during their rescue and relief efforts.

Many believe that resolutions would come as good news to relief workers who require immediate relief, but others believe that these are only short-term solutions.

John Feal, founder and president of the FealGood Foundation, said that while these lawsuits will help rescuers in need of assistance, the bigger goal is to pass House Resolution 847, which will provide $5.5 billion in monetary compensation, as well as health insurance, to eligible responders.

"If you took 9,000 people across the board on a billion dollars, each person is going to get about $200,000," Feal said. "But with the bill, you're getting five and a half billion dollars in compensation to go around."

Feal also stressed that the bill would provide health insurance to responders over the next 30 years, guaranteeing more security.

"While I think David Worby, Mark Burns and Paul Napoli have done a great job fighting litigation for 9/11 responders, it's my opinion that the bill, which provides health care over the next 30 years is a better avenue," he said.

The first half of the bill, which is the compensatory element, was passed in June 2008. The second half, which features the health insurance portion, is awaiting the Energy and Commerce subcommittee's approval. Feal hopes that the bill will be up for vote by the end of March or early April.

President Barack Obama initially expressed hesitation over the bill. He acknowledged the heroism of the responders, but said that he was in opposition to the bill. But after a press conference and rally organized by the FealGood Foundation, the president said he would review the bill.

Feal is certain that Obama will change his stance. "I'm confident that this bill is going to get marked up and that the President won't even think about vetoing this bill."

Gold9472

02-09-2010, 10:28 AM

The Disgraceful Treatment of 9/11 First Responders
The city should do the right thing

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/The-Disgraceful-Treatment-of-911-First-Responders-83601322.html

By GABE PRESSMAN
Updated 7:49 AM EST, Fri, Feb 5, 2010

A federal judge reports that the plaintiffs in the lawsuits by first responders to the World Trade Center may be getting closer to a settlement.

It’s been eight and a half years since thousands of fire fighters, police officers and other city workers and volunteers rushed to the site, and clawed through the rubble in search of possible survivors and remains of the victims of the terrorist attack.

Lawyers for both the plaintiffs and the city have been dueling in court. And there have been many delays.

That it’s taken this long is a disgrace. Some of these first responders suffered major injuries or illnesses. Hundreds have died already.

But now Federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein, monitoring the case, reports: “There have been intensive discussions going on looking to settlements of individual cases and globally of all cases.” He says the parties have worked hard and that the settlement is “complicated.”

The plaintiffs -- more than 9,000 of them -- claim the city, its contractors and other major defendants, including the Port Authority, had inadequate safety procedures and supervision.

Now, a draft settlement has reportedly been agreed upon.

John Feal, a demolition expert, lost half his left foot when a steel beam fell on it as he worked in the rubble. He became a major advocate for first responders. He told me: “It’s an insult to those who have suffered much more than I that it’s taken so long to get any compensation for them.”

In the wake of 9/11 many first responders have developed respiratory illnesses. As the Times reports, some legal experts believe the cases have been made more complicated by the fact that the collapse of the towers “created an unfamiliar toxic soup from the dust and fumes.”

A Cardozo law school professor, Anthony Sebok, told me it will be “difficult” to prove that what happened actually caused these respiratory ailments. He says, because of the complexity and number of cases, some kind of “rough justice” might have to be found, possibly a compromise solution to the thousands of cases.

I spoke to Glen Klein, a former NYPD emergency service officer from Centereach, Long Island. He says his respiratory and gastrointestinal problems were caused by the hundreds of hours he spent on recovery at ground zero.

“I wake up every day scared to death that I may have some fatal disease like cancer,” he says. “And yet I’m still better off than some of the construction workers and others who don’t get any benefits. Some people have lost their homes. Marriages have broken up.

“I hope we’re getting close to a settlement, for the sake especially of those people who have suffered more than me."

No matter how the law suits are finally settled, it’s time that President Obama took strong action in support of the first responders. He could endorse the bill that’s been lying around in Congress for four years. This legislation would provide decent health care and compensation for these aggrieved people for years to come.

Gold9472

02-12-2010, 10:21 AM

9/11 Health bill loses long term support

http://www.queenscourier.com/articles/2010/02/09/news/top_stories/doc4b71b79a773c0852408577.txt

BY CLAUDIA CRUZ
Tuesday, February 9, 2010 2:42 PM EST

The healthcare of first responders, volunteers, and recovery and clean-up workers after the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, suffered a setback when the Obama administration stated it would not guarantee any long-term funding for their medical monitoring and treatment programs.

In a January 27 meeting between the New York Congressional delegation and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Sebelius informed the delegation that the administration could not support the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2009 – introduced by Representative Carolyn Maloney – due to the bill’s provisions that would require mandatory annual spending on federal 9/11 health programs.

Instead, the administration offered – on February 1, 2010 – to double the 2011 budget to $150 million from the current $70 million allotted for this year. Currently, the medical monitoring and treatment programs are funded through discretionary spending, which needs to be renewed and approved annually by Congress.

“Good news for one year isn’t enough to allay the fears of families of these 9/11 heroes that they could be bankrupted by health costs five or 15 years down the road,” said Maloney in a statement to the press. “The doubling of funding only proves the point for those of us who have been saying for years that the health needs of responders should not be subject to the whims of who is in power in Washington.”

Statistics from the National Institutes for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) show that as of March 31, 2009, more than 51,000 World Trade Center (WTC) responders nationwide have met eligibility and have enrolled in the medical monitoring and treatment programs, according to Fred Blosser, a NIOSH spokesperson. NIOSH created the criteria of 9/11 health related ailments, which include asthma, chronic cough syndrome, sleep apnea, chronic rhinosinusitus, gastroesophageal reflux disorder, post traumatic stress disorder and depression, among others.

The Zadroga bill would have provided a mechanism for the continuous funding of the WTC monitoring and treatment programs with a payment rate based on federal compensation systems like Black Lung disease, energy workers and members of Congress. However, the workers’ compensation, public and private insurance plans would be the primary payers.

“The responders’ health must be monitored closely, so that early detection gives them a real chance against the serious long-term illnesses caused by working at Ground Zero,” said Maloney. “For my part, I will be asking for a meeting with the President to explain those needs more clearly – because I expect he will agree with us and overrule his staff.”

Gold9472

02-12-2010, 10:22 AM

Years later, 9/11 dust, fumes cause headaches: study

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gSMdNeLA9oIlB9cSbaqQptjDIsRg

(AFP) – 1 day ago

WASHINGTON — Exposure to dust and fumes caused by the collapse of the World Trade Center during the September 11, 2001 attacks can cause headaches years later, according to a study released Wednesday.

"We knew that headaches were common in people living and working near the World Trade Center on and immediately after 9/11, but this is the first study to look at headaches several years after the event," said study author Sara Crystal of the New York University School of Medicine.

The study involved 765 people who were enrolled in the Bellevue Hospital World Trade Center Environmental Health Center seven years after the building collapse and who did not have headaches prior to the 2001 attacks.

About 55 percent of the participants reported having exposure to the initial World Trade Center dust cloud.

Forty-three percent of those surveyed said they had headaches in the four weeks prior to enrolling in the study, and people caught in the initial dust cloud were slightly more likely to report headaches than those who were not.

People with headaches were also more likely to experience wheezing, breathlessness during exercise, nasal drip or sinus congestion and reflux disease after 9/11.

"More research needs to be done on the possible longer-term effects of exposure to gasses and dust when the World Trade Center fell," Crystal said.

"We also need additional studies to understand the relationship between headaches, other physical symptoms, and mental health issues."

The full study will be released at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting in Toronto in April.

Gold9472

02-15-2010, 08:56 AM

Lawyers for 9/11 responders defend firm's conduct

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iXCFDDZCzzpyyLtZFj9Wed5DQjuwD9DQQJ080

By DAVID B. CARUSO (AP) – 2 days ago

NEW YORK — The lead lawyer for thousands of Sept. 11 rescue and recovery workers has acknowledged that in preparing some claims, his firm made mistakes — including assertions that people had cancer when they didn't.

But the attorney, Paul Napoli, said the errors all occurred at preliminary stages of the case, are being corrected and won't have any bearing on the outcome. He characterized the mistakes as few and accidental, caused by a crushing workload and a rush to meet court deadlines.

"We are not trying to pull the wool over anyone's eyes," Napoli said in an interview with The Associated Press on Thursday.

Napoli's firm, Worby Groner Edelman & Napoli Bern, is coordinating lawsuits filed by more than 9,000 police officers, firefighters and construction workers who say New York City and its contractors failed to protect them from toxic World Trade Center ash.

The AP reported Sunday that some of the first cases headed toward trial in the long legal battle contained inconsistent or exaggerated information about worker health problems or the time they spent at ground zero.

One of the cases examined by the AP involved a New York City police sergeant who sued over breathing difficulties but was later incorrectly listed by her legal team as having lung cancer.

Another police officer from northern New Jersey was listed in a court filing as having worked 300 days at ground zero, when work records suggested that any time he spent at the site was more limited.

After the story ran, the head of an association of retired fire department medics told the AP the firm had also misclassified her illness, and the illnesses of other workers, because of sloppy record keeping.

Marianne Pizzitola, the president of the FDNY EMS Retirees Association, said she developed a mild respiratory ailment because of her work at ground zero, but the law firm asked her to sign legal papers saying she has brain and blood cancers. She said other association members had come forward with similar complaints.

Napoli criticized the AP's report as "nitpicking."

He said some of the information given to the court early on in the case was "filed in a rush" to beat tight deadlines.

"Are there some mistakes? Yes. But whenever anyone does everything, there are mistakes," he said.

One of Napoli's partners, William Groner, said the firm has hired teams of nurses and spent millions of dollars verifying medical records.

"I'm extremely confident that the overwhelming amount of data that has been provided to the court is accurate," he said. "However, we have numerous procedures in place to ensure that inaccuracies are found and corrected as soon as possible."

The firm has spent years collecting medical files and entering the information into a database the court is using to categorize plaintiffs and manage the case.

Simultaneously, the team is trying to negotiate a settlement and prepare for trials set to start in May.

The accuracy of the firm's records on client injuries could wind up playing a major part in any settlement, as it would likely help determine how much each plaintiff gets paid.

Pizzitola, whose association has about 120 members, said she worries that any errors in those files could either derail legitimate claims or be misinterpreted by the public as emergency responders lying about their illnesses.

"I don't want that to be the perception," she said. "I don't think it's the people. I think it's the firm. I think they are overworked and understaffed."

She said her lawyers ultimately corrected her records, but only after she threatened to drop out of the suit. Months after her first complaint, she said she logged on to a database maintained by the firm and found it still listed her as having cancer.

"I was furious," she said of the ordeal, adding that the false cancer diagnosis wasn't the only mistake in her file. "They had me seeing doctors I don't even know."

Ray Simons, an EMT who retired after he was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis, said the firm asked him to sign a case history that said he had liver cancer. Simons, 59, said he has liver cysts, but they are not cancerous.

"To make the leap immediately to cancer is ridiculous," he said

Napoli said both those instances actually show a strength in the law firm's system.

"We are sending the stuff and asking, Is this correct? That's the whole reason we do it," he said.

"When clients say, you've got this wrong, that's a good thing," he added.

It ensures, he said, that the evidence ultimately provided to the court is accurate when it matters most: at settlement or trial. Everything up to that point, he said, is just "part of the process."

Gold9472

02-19-2010, 01:39 PM

NY questions health claims of some 9/11 responders

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iXCFDDZCzzpyyLtZFj9Wed5DQjuwD9DU6OS00

By DAVID B. CARUSO (AP) – 1 day ago

NEW YORK — Lawyers defending New York City against thousands of lawsuits filed by Sept. 11 emergency responders say many of the claims are baseless and have asked a judge to dismiss some of the first cases headed toward trial.

In a series of court filings late Tuesday, the city's legal team detailed several instances in which it said people who claimed to have been sickened by World Trade Center ash were already ill before the attacks.

One former Fire Department battalion chief who attributed respiratory problems to the dust had been granted a disability pension for the same type of breathing ailments in 1999, the city said.

A 400-pound utility worker who said he developed shortness of breath and other health problems after being deployed to ground zero had breathing problems diagnosed before 2001, the city said.

City lawyers also cited the case of a Staten Island construction worker who blamed a litany of health ailments on exposure to ground zero dust, even though he had previously filed a medical malpractice case blaming some of the same problems on a chronic gastrointestinal disease he'd had since the 1990s.

The city asked the judge presiding over the case to dismiss 17 suits on a variety of grounds.

Paul Napoli, the lead lawyer for more than 9,000 police officers, firefighters, construction laborers and other ground zero workers, dismissed the city's motions as posturing.

"He thinks these guys should go home and get no money," Napoli said of James Tyrrell, lead attorney for the city. "He does not think much of police officers or firefighters."

He predicted that some of the same cases criticized by the city as "baseless" would be embraced by jurors as compelling.

Tyrrell accused Napoli of repeatedly making "slipshod" filings that misstated how much time workers spent at ground zero or the severity of their illnesses, with few specifics on how the city was to blame.

"On the eve of trial, the time for boilerplate allegations — and for more excuses — has run out," Tyrrell wrote.

The Associated Press conducted its own review of some of the first cases headed toward trial in the legal battle and reported Feb. 7 that some contained inconsistent information about worker health problems or the time they spent at ground zero. Napoli called that investigation "misinformed."

Napoli's firm has been locked in a lengthy legal battle with the city and ground zero construction contractors over the health of workers who spent time at the trade center site.

They are arguing that thousands of workers were sent into toxic conditions without proper gear and are now sick with a variety of cancers and respiratory problems.

U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein has adopted a strategy of selecting just a small number of cases for trials, with the intention of using those initial court battles to craft a settlement for the rest.

The initially picked 30 cases for trial, but that number is now being whittled to 12.

The city's filings Tuesday illustrate how difficult it might be for some of the plaintiffs to link their illnesses to service at ground zero.

Several of the cases involved people with limited exposure to trade center dust, including Consolidated Edison workers like Robert Galvani.

Galvani's lawyers had initially claimed that he was "never provided a respirator of any kind" when he was deployed to help repair the electrical grid in lower Manhattan after the attacks.

But in a deposition, Galvani said that was false. Every Con Ed worker, he said, was fitted with a full-face respirator with filters, cleaning pads, booties and gloves before they were allowed anywhere near the trade center site. He said he wore his respirator religiously.

The city also said Galvani weighed "between 400 and 450 pounds" at the time of the attacks, and had sleep apnea, hypertension, respiratory problems and diabetes diagnosed prior to 2001.

City lawyers also questioned the health claims of a former Fire Department battalion chief, Richard Ardisson.

In his suit filed in 2005, Ardisson blamed trade center dust for ailments including asthma, bronchitis, and other respiratory problems.

But the city said those conditions predated 9/11.

In fact, Ardisson retired from the Fire Department on a $110,000-per-year disability pension in 1999 after he performed poorly on a lung function test and was found to have severe bronchial asthma and obstructive airway disease.

Napoli and other lawyers working for the plaintiffs said they didn't have the details of Tuesday's individual cases at their fingertips, but said research has shown that some 9/11 responders with pre-existing asthma and other health problems saw their conditions worsen substantially as a result of exposure to trade center dust.

He said it should be left for a jury to decide the facts of each case.

Gold9472

03-01-2010, 09:17 AM

As Ground Zero cases go to trial, respirator rule is revealed

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2010/02/28/2010-02-28_a_911_smoking_gun_as_cases_go_to_trial_respirat or_rule_is_revealed.html

BY Alison Gendar
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Sunday, February 28th 2010, 4:00 AM

A lawyer in two Ground Zero sickness cases green-lighted for trial says he has a smoking gun: buried city documents that prove firefighters should have gotten respirators.

The papers emerged in a veritable mountain of files the city turned over to workers who believe they were sickened by toxins after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Lawyer Andrew Carboy, whose firm represents more than 600 firefighters, said the FDNY had rules on the book requiring Bravest be equipped with respirators before Sept. 11.

But memos showing that weren't handed over until this summer - in a data dump of 3 million documents - five years after the legal battle began. "They provide everyone with helmets, with bunker gear, with [air] packs. They could have done the same with respirators, and they withheld the documents saying they had a program to do it," Carboy said.

Carboy's firm represents Firefighters Frank Malone and the late Raymond Hauber, whose cases are among a dozen picked to go to trial, starting in May.

Four were chosen from more than 9,000 by a federal judge, four by the city, and four by plaintiffs' lawyers. More than $1 billion in damages hinge on the outcome.

To show the city is liable, Carboy plans to wield memos about the FDNY's "respiratory protection program," which was supposed to provide respirators for "reasonably foreseeable emergency situations" like building collapses.

The FDNY didn't follow its own guidelines and had only 600 respirators for more than 11,200 uniformed members when the twin towers fell Sept. 11, Carboy said.

A 2003 FDNY memo called for the head of safety and health for the department, Tennyson Headley, to be canned in part because of the dysfunctional respirator program. But Headley is still on the FDNY payroll.

In a Feb. 5 deposition, he admitted he didn't know the FDNY had a program until well after 9/11, or that he was responsible for making sure firefighters were trained to use the masks.

The city's lawyers deny the memo was hidden, saying documents about the program were "irrelevant" because a separate respirator policy was created for Ground Zero after the attacks.

On Sept. 11, the FDNY ordered 5,000 respirators for $20 to $25 each, court documents say.

Gold9472

03-01-2010, 09:17 AM

Report: FDNY Lacked Proper Breathing Equipment On 9/11

http://www.ny1.com/5-manhattan-news-content/top_stories/114414/report--fdny-lacked-proper-breathing-equipment-on-9-11

NY1 News

There is reportedly new proof that shows the city didn't do everything possible to protect firefighters who becamse sick after September 11th.

The Daily News says a lawyer representing more than 600 firefighters claims concealed city documents show all firefighters should have been equipped with respirators before the attacks.

The paper says the New York City Fire Deparmtment broke its guidelines by having only 600 respirators for more than 11,000 firefighters at the time.

According to the memos, the equipment was only handed out last summer.

The city's lawyers deny the memos were hidden, and calls the issue irrelevant, because the city instituted a separate respirator policy after the attacks.

Gold9472

03-01-2010, 09:18 AM

"I was at ground zero for 5 days before I was horribly injured. I never once wore a mask or a respirator, nor did anyone tell me to. These lawyers are worse then those who attacked us on 9/11/01." - John Feal - 2/28/2010

Gold9472

03-02-2010, 07:13 PM

From John Feal: "Our mark up date has been given to us. After months/years of rallying, press-conference's, trips to D.C., meetings, begging, crying, funerals, interviews,etc... We are one step closer to history. March 16th, HR847 gets marked up in the Sumcommittee and voted on by the 38 members. Thank you everyone who stood and fought with me."

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:50 PM

Zadroga Bill for 9/11 Health Care Passes Subcommittee Vote, Responders Wait

Read more: http://dnainfo.com/20100316/manhattan/zadroga-bill-for-911-health-care-passes-subcommitte-vote-responders-wait#ixzz0pB05LpvT

March 16, 2010 6:19pm Updated March 17, 2010 7:14am

By Josh Williams and Jon Schuppe

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

INWOOD — Keith Lebow stood outside the Church of the Good Shepherd in Inwood on Tuesday, looking at the steel cross that honors the people from his neighborhood who died on 9/11.

This is where he wants to be remembered, too.

“When I die from my illness, this is where my stone is going, right there,” Lebow, 46, said.

A former ironworker who spent 100 hours clearing debris and searching for victims at Ground Zero, Lebow can’t afford the medical care he needs to deal with the myriad of respiratory and skin illnesses he’s contracted.

He’s one of the 10,000 people who sued the city for compensation, but says his portion of a proposed $657.5 million settlement — starting at $3,250 each — would not be enough to keep him alive.

He needs the Zadroga bill.

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, named after a New York detective who died after inhaling toxic World Trade Center dust, would provide medical monitoring and treatment to WTC responders and community members for the rest of their lives.

The $11 billion bill was approved by a Congressional subcommittee on Tuesday, and is headed for a vote by the entire House of Representatives.

Lebow suffers from lymphoma, asthma, gastritis, cellulitis, sinusitis, post-traumatic stress disorder and several other ailments. He was hospitalized Sunday after he started spitting up blood. His left calf has turned black, and says that if he injures it further, it could develop gangrene. And he his caring for his 90-year-old mother.

“If the Zadroga bill doesn’t’ get passed, it’s pretty much a death sentence for me,” Lebow said. “Even if we win the lawsuit, I am not going to be able to afford my medications.”

John Feal, an injured construction worker and founder of the Fealgood Foundation, a nonprofit group that helps people hurt at Ground Zero, said there are more than 55,000 people suffering from the effects of 9/11. He is among those who did not join the lawsuit against the city.

The proposed payouts were a joke, he said.

“They might as well give out 9/11 instant scratch off lottery tickets,” he said. “The $3,250...doesn’t even cover some first responders’ medication costs,” Feal said.

The proposed settlement with the city still needs to be approved by the plaintiffs.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg has called the settlement “a fair and reasonable resolution to a complex set of circumstances.”

Bloomberg also applauded the House’s progress on the Zagroga bill. He said it “marks an important step in our effort to secure sustained medical monitoring and treatment for the first responders and survivors of the September 11 attacks.”

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:50 PM

9/11 Health Bill Passes Key House Panel

http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local-beat/911-Health-Bill-Passes-Key-House-Panel-94885399.html

By HASANI GITTENS
Updated 9:22 PM EDT, Tue, May 25, 2010

A key panel in the House of Representatives voted Tuesday night to pass the September 11th Health and Compensation Act.

The Energy and Commerce Committee took up the bill, which would provide health care and compensation for first responders with an illness that can be linked to the 9/11 attacks.

Mayor Bloomberg praised the panel's action.

“Today’s approval of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act by the House Energy and Commerce Committee is an important step towards ensuring that the appropriate resources are available to take care of those who need it most," said Bloomberg. "The attacks of September 11th were an attack on this nation, and it’s only fitting that we as a nation take care of those who survived the attacks, and those who risked their lives to save others. "

The bill would take steps to give those eligible for medical treatment the opportunity to do so without sharing the cost, re-open the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund for those who didn't file or become ill after the original deadline and would also establish an emergency council responsible for coordinating the care and compensation of victims.

The legislation is named after James Zadroga, an NYPD detective and first responder who spent more than 400 hours working at the World Trade Center Site. He fell ill, and his death in 2006 was linked to his work there.

In the weeks following the Sept. 11 attacks, the EPA told people working and living near the 9/11 site that the air was safe to breathe.

The city and federal government were slow to acknowledge the link between toxins at the Ground Zero site and illnesses suffered by first responders.

“The Zadroga Act just cleared its toughest hurdle so far, to the relief of thousands of Americans who lost their health because of 9/11 and desperately need help,” said New York Rep. Carolyn Maloney.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:50 PM

House committee approves 9/11 health plan bill

http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=12544278

Associated Press - May 26, 2010 6:55 AM ET

NEW YORK (AP) - A House committee has approved legislation for a long-stalled health plan for first responders to the World Trade Center terrorist attacks.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg hailed the approval "as an important step toward ensuring that the appropriate resources are available to take care of those who need it most."

The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act was backed by New York City lawmakers. It was approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee Tuesday night.

The legislation is named for a NYPD detective who died after inhaling toxic dust at the trade center site.

It would provide health care and financial compensation for those who developed ailments after responding to the site or working on the cleanup.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:51 PM

Plenty of anger over GOP opposition as 9/11 health bill nears reality

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/05/26/2010-05-26_plenty_of_rancor_as_911_health_bill_near_realit y.html

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Wednesday, May 26th 2010, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Congress took another slow, painful step toward passing a bill to treat people ailing from the 9/11 attacks, but not without angering the very responders it aims to help.

The measure passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee, 33 to 12.

The outrage stemmed from bill opponents and amendments offered by Republicans, who suggested the country couldn't afford the health care and compensation bill, estimated to cost close to $11 billion.

"By making this a new mandatory program, you jeopardize the financial health of the United States of America," said Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) at the committee meeting.

"Are you going to raise somebody's taxes when they're barely able to make their house payment?" Rogers said.

"I can't believe for one minute that you're willing to jeopardize the financial health of every single American," he said, speaking directly to responders, who were outraged.

"To tell us that people won't be able to pay their mortgages and their bills because of us - that hurt," said Kenny Specht, 41, a retired firefighter who survived thyroid cancer.

"I am offended on so many levels," said Jill Fenwick, a Staten Islander who worked in Tribeca - and kept working until lung ailments made it impossible.

Republicans also tried unsuccessfully to add amendments to bar illegal immigrants from the treatment program, to ban abortions among the ailing rescue workers and to end the treatment program when national health reform takes effect.

And in a move that passed - but sparked stunned laughter among the responders - Florida GOP Rep. Cliff Stearns offered an amendment to prevent terrorists from getting 9/11 treatment - suggesting there might be terrorists among the responders.

"Isn't it laughable? We're not the terrorists - the terrorists attacked us," said Kimberly Flynn of Manhattan, who chuckled in disbelief.

The bill would spend $4.59 billion over 10 years for treatment, rather than the unlimited program responders had hoped for. The time period was shortened at the request of Republicans. The city would have to pay 10%.

A measure to also spend $6 billion to compensate victims has already passed.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:51 PM

Senate Cues Up 9/11 Health Hearing

http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dc/2010/05/senate-cues-up-911-health-hear.html#ixzz0pB1RwQZ2

By Michael McAuliff

With a Sept. 11 health bill nearly set to go to the House floor for a vote, the Senate is finally taking its first step to consider providing care to the first responders of 9/11.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who offered the Senate bill last year, says Health Committee Chairman Tom Harkin will bring the issue up for discussion for the first time in the upper chamber.

“At my urging, Chairman Harkin has agreed to hold a hearing on the 9/11 health bill,” Gillibrand said, noting how much farther along the House was on the measure after its Health Committee voted Yea last night.

“My colleagues in the House have made tremendous progress on this critical legislation, now we need action in the Senate,” Gillibrand said. “We have an undeniable moral obligation to help the heroes of 9/11 and all others exposed, and failure to do so may have long-lasting implications on future response efforts.”

No date was set, however, and the Senate Judiciary Committee also must crank up if there is any chance at a comprehensive 9/11 bill passing Congress before the ninth anniversary of the attacks.

And given Republican antipathy to the effort to create a mandatory program for ill responders, the legislation would probably be better off moving this year, than waiting for the next Congress to be seated.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:51 PM

Bill to help sick 9/11 responders advances

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5geUySURT-diI9FIZDcDZlpKz6mNwD9FUKOU00

(AP) – 1 day ago

WASHINGTON — A House panel has approved a $5.1 billion program to provide health care for more of the 9/11 first responders and others sickened by toxins emanating from the ruins of the World Trade Center.

The Energy and Commerce Committee voted 33-12 for the bill Tuesday.

New York City would contribute 10 percent of the cost of the program, which would run for 10 years. It would expand current city 9/11 health programs to cover an additional 25,000 responders and 25,000 survivors.

The legislation, which now moves to the full House, is named for James Zadroga, a New York City Police Department detective who died at age 34 in 2006 from respiratory disease contracted during rescue operations at ground zero.

The measure, sponsored by New York Democrat Carolyn Maloney, also reopens the federal victim compensation fund that closed at the end of 2003.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:51 PM

House GOP Members Question 9/11 Health Bill

http://gothamist.com/2010/05/26/house_gop_members_question_911_heal.php

By Jen Chung in News on May 26, 2010 4:02 PM

Yesterday's Ground Zero news wasn't only about mosques—the nearly $11 billion James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act was approved by the House of Representatives' House Energy and Commerce Committee, 33 to 12. But there was a fair amount of opposition from Republican members, like Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Michigan) who said, "By making this a new mandatory program, you jeopardize the financial health of the United States of America."

The Daily News reports that Rogers also said, "Are you going to raise somebody's taxes when they're barely able to make their house payment? I can't believe for one minute that you're willing to jeopardize the financial health of every single American." Which upset first responders: Retired firefighter, who suffered from thyroid cancer, said, "To tell us that people won't be able to pay their mortgages and their bills because of us - that hurt." And then Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Florida) wanted to add an amendment to prohibit terrorists from taking advantage of the health care, leading one first victim to say, "Isn't it laughable? We're not the terrorists - the terrorists attacked us."

The legislation will be voted on next Tuesday by the House Health Subcommittee. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan) said, “Tuesday’s vote will be a giant step toward the finish line for the Zadroga Act, and we are hopeful it will pass with strong bipartisan support. It’s been nine long years since the attacks. Congress must finally step up to the plate and provide long-term health care and compensation for the heroes and survivors of 9/11. We have a moral responsibility to provide care for those who lost their health because of the attacks on America --it’s simply the least this great nation can do."

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:51 PM

9/11 health bill finally gets Senate panel hearing; no date set yet

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/05/27/2010-05-27_911_bill_finally_gets_senate_panel_hearing.html #ixzz0pB25F2ws

BY Michael Mcauliff
DAILY NEWS WASHINGTON BUREAU
Thursday, May 27th 2010, 4:00 AM

WASHINGTON - A Senate committee finally agreed Wednesday to give the 9/11 health bill a hearing.

A spokeswoman for Senate Health Committee Chairman Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) said no date was set.

But it would mark the first time the measure to care for ailing Sept. 11 responders advanced that far in the Senate. The bill has passed two committees in the House and could be voted on there before July 4.

"At my urging, Chairman Harkin has agreed to hold a hearing," said Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.)

"My colleagues in the House have made tremendous progress on this critical legislation; now we need action in the Senate," she added.

Politics could add urgency to the Senate effort. The bill passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday with just two Republican votes.

If the GOP picks up seats in Congress in the fall as expected, passing the $11 billion measure would likely be more difficult next year.

Gold9472

05-27-2010, 06:53 PM

Local pols push 9/11 health care bill through committee

http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_370/localpols.html

BY Meghan Neal

U.S. Representatives Carolyn B. Maloney and Jerry Nadler paid a visit to ground zero on Sunday to highlight a 9/11 health care bill that has been dragging through Congress for nearly nine years. The bill cleared a huge hurdle on Tuesday when it passed its final committee vote, sending it to the house floor.

“It’s a difficult bill, a complicated bill, a costly bill,” said Maloney. The legislation would provide $11 billion in federal funds toward health care and compensation for first responders and survivors who are sick as a result of toxins left in the air after the 9/11 attacks.

Maloney and Nadler were joined by a group of the bill’s supporters: police, firefighters, 9/11 first responders currently suffering from health problems, members of the New York delegation and Lower Manhattan residents.

“Every day another floor, another piece of steel goes into reconstructing ground zero, and yet we still haven’t found a way to provide health care,” Rep. Anthony Weiner said at the event. “We’ve waited far, far too long.”

Now the bill is one step closer to becoming law. Having passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee Tuesday, it will be sent to the floor of congress for a vote, possibly as early as next month. Meanwhile, the Senate HELP committee (Health, Education, Labor and Pensions) has a hearing scheduled for July.

Thousands of rescue workers that responded to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, as well as local residents, office workers and school children, continue to suffer significant medical problems, the bill states.

Nadler was quick to point out that at least 10,000 rescue workers who traveled from all around the country after the attacks were also affected. One of the major reasons for opposition to the bill is that it would delegate a substantial amount of federal funds solely to New York.

“People from 431 of 435 congressional districts came to help,” Nadler said. “It’s not just a New York issue. New York was not attacked; the United States was attacked.”

The bill’s supporters pointed fingers at the federal government, saying it claimed the air was safe for residents to return to New York when in fact it was not.

By quickly returning to town and starting to rebuild, it meant the terrorists did not win, said Catherine Hughes, co-chair of Manhattan Community Board 1. Now many who lived, worked and went to school in the area are sick, with more becoming sick every day.

A representative of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association sited a New England Journal of Medicine article statistic that firefighters at the scene lost 12 years of lung capacity in the blink of an eye.

Several first responders present expressed concern that if, and when, another attack occurred, people might think twice before responding due to the potential health consequences.

The bill sites studies and medical monitoring programs that show increased health problems and worsened symptoms over the years. This includes respiratory issues, mental health conditions, low pregnancy rates and birth defects.

The bill is named the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, after the first NYPD officer whose death, of respiratory problems, was sited as a direct cause of toxins at the site of the attack.

The 9/11 Health and Compensation Act has two main components. One, it continues comprehensive health care and expands federal programs to monitor those exposed to toxins and treat those already diagnosed with illness or injury.

Two, it re-opens the Victim Compensation Fund, which enables families of victims to recoup financial losses caused by the disaster. The legislation would extend the deadline for those who wish to file a claim.

Adding pressure to the issue is the city’s $657 million legal settlement being offered to responders for 9/11-related health problems. People could be forced to choose between the less generous settlement or take a risk on a bill that is not guaranteed to pass.

Rep. Maloney said Tuesday’s vote was the toughest hurdle yet.

“We’ve gathered at ground zero many times,” she said, standing at Vesey and Greenwich Streets. “I look forward to the day when the bill will be law and we don’t have to do this anymore.”