On December 18, in approving a year-end spending measure to fund the government, Congress reauthorized the Zadroga Act, which provides benefits and health care to those afflicted with illness and injuries arising from the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The legislation extended the health benefits for 75 years, the New York Daily News reports. “It’s a very good day,” said Joseph Zadroga, father of detective James Zadroga, who died in January 2006 from illness caused by toxic exposures at ground zero after the World Trade Center towers fell.
The compensation fund and health care programs were in danger of expiring after Congress failed to meet a September 30 deadline to reauthorize the funding, according to the Daily News. In addition to extending the health care program, the Victims Compensation Fund is now authorized for another five years to provide benefits to first responders too sick to work.
Rep. Caroline Maloney, one of the leaders in the bipartisan effort to reauthorize the Zadroga Act said, “After 15 years, the heroes and survivors of 9/11 will know that their health care is permanent and their compensation is full.” New York Mayor Bill de Blasio called the reauthorization a “long overdue victory for the 72,000 brave men and women around the country who rely on these programs.”
More than 200 New York City police officers and firefighters have died from 9/11-related illnesses and roughly 33,000 responders and survivors are experiencing an assortment of ailments. Many of them suffer from chronic conditions like asthma, pulmonary disease and gastric reflux, and medical researchers have identified more than 50 types of cancer linked to toxins from the collapse of the twin towers, according to the Daily News.
The act is named for James Zadroga, a 34-year-old detective who became ill after spending close to 500 hours working in the ruins of the World Trade Center, inhaling a mix of asbestos, pulverized cement, and other toxic chemicals. Joseph Zadroga said when his son became ill “nobody knew what was going on . . . Now we can move forward.”
Reauthorization of the Zadroga Act was a lengthy process, the Daily News says. Supporters of the extension—first responders, clean-up and recovery workers, survivors, and officials—made numerous trips to Washington D.C. to convince Congress to extend the Zadroga Act.
An emotional Kirsten Gillibrand, junior senator from New York, called the reauthorization “a very important moment for all of us,” and she said this was her “proudest day in Washington.” Rep. Jerry Nadler echoed those sentiments and also said, “Our heroes deserve never to worry that their health care will disappear, or that their families will struggle because of 9/11.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, New York’s senior senator, said those who rushed to the towers on September 11, 2001 “will know that if they get sick because of their bravery, the federal government will be there for them.”
The Zadroga Act reauthorization was part of the $1-trillion omnibus spending bill that keeps the government funded. The House vote for passage was 316 to 113 and in the Senate, the vote was 65 to 33.
from Parker Waichman http://www.yourlawyer.com/blog/world-trade-center-health-program-for-first-responders-reauthorized-for-75-years/
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