On the 12th Anniversary of 9/11, Please Spread the Word That Help Is Available for Those Injured, Made Ill by the Attacks
For Immediate Release from 9/11 Health Watch
September 11th, 2013
Press Contact: Benjamin Chevat (646) 634-9103
ben.chevat@911healthwatch.org
On the 12th Anniversary of 9/11, Please Spread the Word That Help Is Available for Those Injured, Made Ill by the Attacks
Today, as the nation pauses to remember those lost on September 11, 2001, 9/11 Health Watch urges Americans to spread the word that help is available for those who were injured or made ill by the attacks. The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, signed into law by President Obama in 2011, provides medical care and economic compensation for ailing 9/11 responders and survivors.
Since the passage of the Zadroga Act, however, a new challenge has emerged: making sure that members of this diverse community are aware of the benefits available to them. Time is of the essence: most ailing 9/11 responders and survivors must register with the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund by October 3, 2013 to be eligible for compensation for their injuries.
Hundreds of thousands are believed to have been exposed to toxins released on 9/11, including more than 90,000 first responders who worked on “The Pile”. Responders came to New York from all over the country and today, 9/11 responders and survivors live in all 50 states. Recently, responders to the Pentagon and Shanksville crash sites were made eligible for medical monitoring and treatment through the World Trade Center Health Program.
If you know someone who was there on 9/11, please make sure they know about the programs that are there to help them:
• The September 11 Victim Compensation Fund: http://www.vcf.gov/
• The World Trade Center Health Program: http://www.cdc.gov/wtc/
The 9/11 Health Watch website also includes useful information for 9/11 responders and survivors and their families.
Thousands of 9/11 responders and survivors continue to have health concerns 12 years after the attacks. In the last year alone, the World Trade Center Health Program has provided medical care for more than 15,000 responders and survivors and has more than 1,400 who have cancer.
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