A huge spike in the number of people seeking evaluations and treatment for 9/11-related health conditions through the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP) has prompted the opening of a new clinic in Lower Manhattan. The clinic, which opened in August at 156 William Street, will provide initial health evaluations and screenings for up to 750 patients a month.   The new William Street clinic should reduce the long wait times applicants were experiencing before…

Through August 31, 2018, the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) has received over 38,500 claims for eligibility and compensation. With that many claimants, a process that involves a detailed review of applications and supporting evidence, and limited staff to conduct these reviews, a long time can pass before a claim is approved. An even longer time may pass before any money actually reaches a claimant. This inevitably means that some 9/11 victims pass away while…

17 years have passed since the horrific events of September 11th, 2001. For those who lost loved ones in and around the Twin Towers that day, the passage of time doesn’t diminish the pain and loss that followed that terrible day. However, some families have experienced some measure of closure because of the hard work of forensic scientists who continue to search for and identify the remains of victims of the attacks. The New York…

9/11 Never Forget I spoke to a woman from Tennessee this morning who came to Ground Zero with her fellow church members on 9/12/2001. She and her church members cooked hot food under the Brooklyn Bridge and brought it to the responders at Ground Zero every day. She stayed for approximately one week volunteering near Ground Zero. Today, she is fighting breast cancer caused by the toxins she breathed in the immediate aftermath of the…

There is a disturbing front page story in today’s issue of the New York Daily News, “9/11 Fund Death Spiral – Toxin Ills Explode as Vic’s Aid Evaporates”  .  According to this article, there are so many people filing 9/11 cancer death claims and claims for other illnesses that the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) could run out of money before everyone is helped.  The Special Master of the VCF, Rupa Bhattacharyya, would not…

IMPORTANT: This upcoming Tuesday, September 11, 2018, several New York State and New York City administrative agencies (such as the FDNY Pension System, NYPD Pension System, New York State Employee Pension System, NYC Employee Pension System and the NY State Workers’ Compensation Board) have STRICT DEADLINES to file ” 9/11 WTC Participation forms ” with the respective agency to protect claimants rights to file for workers’ compensation and/or WTC disability pensions in the future.  Although…

A large health care services company that has been providing nationwide health evaluations, monitoring exams, diagnostic services, and treatment for survivors of the 9/11 attacks through the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP) recently announced an expansion of its role in this vital, life-saving program. OptumServe’s Logistics Health Inc. was issued a two-year contract by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health to provide screenings and…