ASK AN ATTORNEY

Interested in working with us? Call us on 866.205.2415 or fill out this quick form and we will contact you within 24 hours!

Best Source of Up-to-Date news on workers' compensation and disability in New York

Cancer a Common Concern for the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act

Posted on Mar 14, 2011

On Thursday, March 10^th a forum was held for the public to express concerns, opinions and ideas regarding the recently passed Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. People gathered to discuss the portion of the bill that details the diseases and conditions recognized in the legislation known as W.T.C Health Program. As speaker after speaker ended their testimonies, it was clear that cancer is one of the most common diseases shared by the people affected by 9/11: "The addition of cancer to the list of approved diseases needs to expedited, especially those cancers that are most strongly correlated to environmental exposure through the inhalation, ingestion and other exposure to carcinogens," said Catherine McVay Hughes, vice chair of Community Board 1.

Some diseases, like cancer and kidney disease, take a long time to develop after exposure to health risks. The first responders to the scene of the 9/11 attacks were given opportunity to enroll in a 9/11 Health Registry, but less than ten percent of local residents enrolled as there was little outreach to them. Dr. Dessau, a pulmonologist attending the public forum, feels all residents in the vicinity of the 9/11 attacks should have received health questionnaires annually, with information containing their health risks. Dr. Dessau lost her once-healthy husband to lung cancer 8 years after the 9/11 attacks. Her husband was a non-smoker and had no history of cancer in his family. The doctor and her husband lived one block south of Pier 26 on Greenwich Street, where the toxic debris from Ground Zero was being stored after the attack

Dr. Dessau's primary concern, as was many of the speakers, was that the connection between the onset of cancer and the 9/11 attacks be recognized.

The Zadroga Legislation will operate within the Department of Health and Human Services starting July 1^st.

If you or someone you love was a 9/11 first responder or clean up worker who experienced health problems, mental anguish, or injuries as a result of the WTC attacks, you may be entitled to monetary compensation under the Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. For more information or to discuss your situation, contact Markhoff & Mittman at 866-205-2415 to schedule a free consultation with a New York Zadroga Act attorney.