Hundreds rally for health care for 9/11 workers
Six years after the Sept.
11, 2001, attacks on the
World Trade Center,
rescue and recovery
workers affected by the
toxic fallout still have not
gotten the medical or
financial help they need
By JAMES PARKS
While more than 600 union mem-
bers were killed on Sept. 11, thou-
sands more who worked in the rubble
of the collapsed buildings are at risk
for chronic diseases.
Workers like Eduardo Torres, a
member of Plumbers Local 14 in New
Jersey, who helped clean up Ground
Zero and has developed chronic respi-
ratory disease because of his exposure
to toxic chemicals in the air around
the site. He told a Sept. 10 press con-
ference in Piscataway, N.J.:
“Staying home and watching the
aftermath of these cowardly attacks
from the comfort of my living room
never entered my mind. Even had I
anticipated the ailments I would face
as a result of my involvement at
Ground Zero, I don’t think it would
have changed my decision to respond.
I hope the federal government will
step up to the plate and provide the re-
sources for the care and monitoring
we need.”
New Jersey State AFL-CIO Presi-
dent Charles Wowkanech said Presi-
dent Bush “has turned his back on
workers many times during his time in
the White House. However, of all the
issues he has been wrong on, his fail-
ure to adequately provide for the brave
men and women that gave so much of
themselves at a dark time for America
is disgusting.”
On Sept. 8, hundreds of working
families in New York joined with
elected officials, first responders, com-
munity organizers and religious lead-
ers to rally and say it’s past time to
take care of the heroes like Torres who
risked their lives six years ago and are
now struggling with disease. The rally,
which commemorated both Labor
Day and the anniversary of the Sept.
11 attacks, drew attention to the bipar-
tisan 9/11 Health and Compensation
Act, which Reps. Jerrold Nadler (D-
N.Y.), Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and
Vito Fossella (R-N.Y.) introduced
Sept. 11.
The bill would provide comprehen-
sive long-term medical coverage and
financial compensation for anyone ex-
posed to the toxic dust and debris of
Ground Zero. Rescue and recovery
workers, their unions, health care ad-
vocates and survivors and their fami-
lies have long said there is a deadly
link between the poisonous Ground
Zero rubble and the debilitating ill-
nesses — and in some cases deaths —
of those exposed. They say federal
funding delays and poor organization
led to the failure of various federal
health agencies to respond fully to the
workers’ needs.
The AFL-CIO reported that for the
first time, the death of a survivor of
the Sept. 11 attacks was officially
linked to exposure to the toxic mate-
rial at Ground Zero.
Rep. Nadler lays the blame on the
government. “Government officials at
all levels took perilous shortcuts on
workers’ safety,” Nadler said. “Many
of you toiled for months on that toxic
pile at Ground Zero without proper
protection. You were unnecessarily ex-
posed to hazardous toxins because of
what the government officials said and
did.”
New York State AFL-CIO Presi-
dent Denis Hughes said “the time is
now for a comprehensive, long-term
commitment from Washington that
addresses the ongoing medical moni-
toring, compensation and treatment
needs of our Sept. 11 heroes.”
“Six years ago, these heroes
showed the whole world how they re-
spond to emergencies. Now it is our
turn,” he added.
Gary La Barbera, president of the
New York City Central Labor Council,
said at the rally, “We will never forget
those who gave their lives on 9/11. We
will never forget those who lost their
lives on 9/11. And we will never for-
get those who are still suffering from
the effects of 9/11.”
The legislation would cover first
responders, rescue workers, construc-
tion workers and volunteers who
pitched in during the nine-month
cleanup at the site. Residents, stu-
dents, office workers and others who
were in Lower Manhattan on 9/11
also would be eligible to receive
health monitoring, treatment for con-
ditions that can be linked to dust expo-
sure and compensation for jobs that
were lost or other financial setbacks
caused by those illnesses. Under the
proposed bill, Ground Zero health
programs would be included in the
federal budget on a regular basis.
Robin Herbert, director of the
World Trade Center monitoring and
treatment program based at Mount
Sinai Medical Center, told The New
York Times about four in 10 of its pa-
tients have had breathing problems,
including asthma, and many suffer
mental health problems such as post-
traumatic stress disorder.
A task force appointed by New
York Mayor Michael Bloomberg (I)
estimated that as many as 400,000
people might have been exposed to
dust from the collapsed World Trade
Center.
Rep. Fossella summed up the feel-
ing of the day when he said: “We have
a solemn responsibility to the unsung
heroes of 9/11 who were exposed to
the air over Ground Zero. These men
and women risked their own lives and
safety when New York and our nation
needed them most. We must support
our unsung heroes and make sure that
they, too, are not forgotten.”
The national AFL-CIO Executive
Council has urged Congress to act im-
mediately to address the pressing
health needs of workers exposed to
Ground Zero toxic substances.
(Editor’s Note: James Parks writes
for the national AFL-CIONow blog.)
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