The 9/11 Health Crisis

The combined poisons of the dust and emissions are now widely considered to be one

of the most toxic combinations in the history of US disaster relief, affecting not only First Responders, but hundreds of thousands of residents and workers of Lower Manhattan and the surrounding areas who returned to homes and jobsites which--shockingly--received little or no cleanup. Equally mind-boggling was the lack of protection offered to First Responders, volunteers and recovery personnel at the site: the majority were issued a paper dust mask, or—more commonly—no protection at all in the wake of EPA announcements that “no significant levels of asbestos” were present (Sept. 13th), and that “air sample… levels…cause no concern” (Sept. 14th), culminating in EPA chief Christine Todd Whitman’s September 18, 2001 declaration: “I am glad to reassure the people of New York . . . that their air is safe to breathe and the water is safe to drink."

Now, six years after the disaster, huge numbers of First Responders, plus their fellow exposed New Yorkers are grievously ill. Afflictions range from chronic bronchial disease to asbestosis, leukemia and cancers, plus a host of other diseases including systemic organ failure for which the etiology remains unidentified. Hundreds of First Responders and New Yorkers have already died; an estimated 70% of the 40,000-plus First Responders have declared illnesses; it is estimated that a further 300,000 New Yorkers will become seriously ill in the future.

Relief for victims has been scarce or nonexistent. Jobs have been lost, pensions denied, families destroyed and bankrupted. Many of the afflicted have become homeless, cast off by a system that refuses to acknowledge or remedy the situation. Medical care is routinely denied due to lack of health insurance, lack of proof of 9/11 involvement, or--if offered--is frequently insufficient given the gravity of the illnesses, some of which confound medical experts. In spite of official assurances that the 9/11 Health Crisis is being adequately addressed, medical centers with WTC-illness clinics such as Mt Sinai, Belleview, and Queens College have been more involved with collecting data and monitoring, as opposed to offering actual treatments.

Federal response has been inadequate at best. The sole major relief fund to date, the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, was designed largely to provide compensation to the families of individuals who perished or were injured on the day of or immediately following the attacks. In spite of the fund’s existence, it has provided relief to only a small fraction of the total number of victims. It has also been criticized because:

•It excludes First Responders who arrived later than 96 hours after the attacks. This is clearly insufficient, given that recovery and cleanup of Ground Zero was over a period of several months, involving tens of thousands of individuals.

•The fund excludes all individuals who became ill later than the designated December 22, 2003 filing date, and is thus useless to victims whose illnesses have a gestation time beyond the 12.22.03 deadline.

•The fund provides no compensation for the over 300,000 residents and workers of Lower Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the adjacent areas who were exposed to toxins in their residences, offices, jobsites or schools.

•The fund obliges victims to sign waivers forfeiting their rights to file lawsuits against the airlines or government if fund money is collected.

In the six year aftermath of the WTC attacks, the 9/11 Health Crisis has become a national disaster of epic proportions. Finally in response, Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY), Congressman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), and Congressman Vito Fossella (R-NY) 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’, 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.

In addition to the Maloney-Nadler-Fossella 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, 9/11 Health Now and other 9/11 groups request the following:

•Accelerated FDA approval for all therapeutics in development that show promise in the treatment of 9/11-related illnesses.

•CDC (Centers for Disease Control) Funding for epidemiological studies on 9/11-related illnesses.

•NIH (National Institutes of Health) Funding to develop a clinical research network specifically for 9/11-related illnesses.

•A Pension Fund for 9/11victims and their families.

•An Emergency Relief Fund to address the urgent financial situation of the 9/11 victims.

•Intervention and Outreach Programs that actively address the practical, medical and sociological needs of 9/11 victims.

•A Superfund for the cleanup and detoxification of Lower Manhattan, Brooklyn, and any surrounding areas affected by 9/11 toxins.

•An accelerated protocol within Congress that would immediately put the above into legislation, along with the passage of the Maloney-Nadler-Fossella 9/11 Health and Compensation Act.

Claire Calladine, 9/11 Health Advocate

David Miller, 9/11 First Responder

9/11 Health Now

10.19.07

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“I am glad to reassure the people of New York...that their air is safe to breathe and the water is safe to drink...”

Christine Todd Whitman,

EPA Chief, September 18, 2001

On September 11, 2001, tens of thousands of Americans converged on New York City’s World Trade Center site in one of the most impassioned rescue and recovery efforts in the history of the country. Unbeknownst to these American patriots, the conditions at Ground Zero--in spite of Federal and State warnings to the contrary--were exceedingly toxic: hundreds of contaminants, including asbestos, lead, mercury and benzene--to name a few—were present in unprecedentedly high levels, both within the billowing dust cloud that settled over Lower Manhattan and the surrounding areas, and in the emissions from the pit that smoldered for months afterward during the cleanup.