City Council backs James Zadroga bill to help sick 9/11 responders

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008...bill_to-2.html

BY FRANK LOMBARDI
DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU
Thursday, February 7th 2008, 4:00 AM

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn pushed Wednesday for speedy passage of a federal bill to help sick 9/11 responders and other victims of its "toxic cloud."

The bill is named for the late James Zadroga, 34, the former NYPD detective who died of lung and brain damage that a New Jersey medical examiner "directly" linked to his more than 450 hours of work at Ground Zero.

City officials dispute that Zadroga's death was caused by inhaling dust at Ground Zero after 9/11. He died in January 2006.

Quinn said the Council was set to pass a resolution calling on Congress to swiftly enact "this lifesaving piece of legislation."

"It isn't just something we want," Quinn said. "It's something we need and it's something we deserve."

Supporters of the resolution include Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-Manhattan, Brooklyn) and Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens), chief sponsors of the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

They contended Washington has "a national responsibility" to care for ongoing victims of "a national attack."

The legislation would pay for the monitoring and treatment of anyone - including volunteers, residents, area workers and others - who is ill, or becomes ill, as a result of exposure to the toxins of Ground Zero. It would also reopen the Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund.

"I feel that we're getting momentum," Maloney said. "I think we're going to pass this thing."