Casualties from the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center continue to mount. Did you participate in the recovery or clean-up work? If so, you too may be in danger.
Reacting to mounting pressure over the summer, retiring New York Governor George Pataki addressed the workers’ compensation part of the problem when he signed legislation adopted by the New York State Legislature in August to eliminate a technical barrier to claims arising from illness inflicted by 9/11 toxic exposures. Under the old rule, workers lost their right to file claims two years after their exposure ended.
“Many of our members volunteered to work in the WTC recovery and clean-up operations,” saysLaborer’s International Union of North America (LIUNA)General President Terence M. O’Sullivan. “If you were at ground zero, you should take advantage of this legislation and register for a possible claim in the years to come, even if you’re not now experiencing symptoms of respiratory illness. You have until August 14, 2007, to register.”
Already, two deaths have been officially attributed to toxic exposures on 9/11 and afterwards and thousands are suffering debilitating respiratory illness.
最不幸的是,9月6日发布的一项研究ctors at Mount Sinai Medical Center reports that nearly 70 percent of roughly 10,000 recovery workers tested at the center display new or worsened respiratory problems since working at ground zero. The study documents that many of the problems initially reported by recovery workers have persisted and grown worse in the years since the clean-up ended.
菲利普·兰德里根博士研究的作者,,noted that dust samples from 9/11 showed the air to be as caustic as drain cleaner, containing innumerable shards of glass and a mixture of carcinogenic substances, such as asbestos and dioxin. When these substances lodge in the lungs, they can produce cancer decades later in life.
About 40 percent of the responders did not have health insurance or lost their insurance after they became too ill to work. Pressure is mounting for the federal government to increase the $52 million it initially allocated for treatment.
“Unless a toxic exposure claim was filed within the initial two-year interval, Laborers should assess their situations and consider registering now,” says Dr. James Melius, the LHSFNA’s Research Director and the Administrator of the New York State Laborers’ Health and Safety Trust Fund (NYSLHSTF). He stresses that “you do not have to have current symptoms of exposure or be ill already. If you were exposed to toxic air and other substances after 9/11, you may become ill in the future. If you don’t register now and then get sick later, you will not be able to file a claim.”
Anyone who worked in the WTC recovery between September 11, 2001, and September 12, 2002, is eligible for registration, even if a claim was filed and denied within the initial two-year interval. Also, if an injury claim has already been filed, it is still wise to file a separate claim for possible toxic exposure illness. Any new registration must be notarized and indicate the date and locations of work performed and the employer’s name or the organization for which volunteer work was performed.
“The state has done the right thing and given WTC workers and volunteers more time to file claims,” says O’Sullivan. “All Laborers who helped in this work must register to preserve their rights to benefits now and in the future.”
For more information about or help with the claims process, contact the NYSLHSTF at 800-797-5931.
