The World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program—the body established to pay for medical treatments for injuries and illnesses related to 9/11—has listed all types of uterine cancer, including endometrial cancer, to its list of covered illnesses.
Now, women enrolled in the program who develop uterine cancer related to their exposures on 9/11 will have the cost of their carefully covered.
The new rule follows efforts by women and women’s groups who saw a connection between the toxic air that surrounded the WTC site after 9/11 and uterine cancer. In the ensuing years, at least 50 women who worked as responders at the site and hundreds who lived near the area have developed some form of uterine cancer.
At first, officials at the WTC Health Program didn’t feel there was enough evidence to add uterine cancer to the list; it wasn’t officially added even after a proposal was released last year. On January 10th, Rep Frank Pallone Jr (D-NY) appealed to the Health Program, urging them to enact the proposed rule. “It has now been eight months since the rule was proposed,” he wrote, “and these women and their families are still waiting.”
The WTC Health Program was established under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010 and is administered by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. At its inception, specific procedures were established to add new conditions to the list of covered illnesses, since scientific experts expected new health impacts of the 9/11 attacks to emerge over time.
Since then, more than 121,000 people have joined the WTC Health Program, including over 26,000 women. Now, those women will have the cost of their carefully covered if they develop uterine cancer. In addition, women enrolled in the program will be monitored for uterine cancer, in the same way, that program members are observed for other 9/11-related illnesses.
The lingering impacts of the attack on the lives of those who responded to the site helped with the cleanup, or lived in the vicinity of the World Trade Center cannot be ignored. Today, over 74,000 people have been diagnosed with physical and mental health conditions related to the attacks and their aftermath.
Napoli Shkolnik has advocated for 9/11 survivors since the health impacts on first responders first became apparent.
If you’re already a program member and want to learn more about coverage for uterine cancer, or if you or a loved one would like to apply for coverage under the WTC health program, contact us today.