Funds compensating victims for September 11 heath effects are being threatened by Washington. Persons affected by exposure to 9/11 health hazards can still make a legal claim to receive compensation.

President Trump’s budget proposal included moving the World Trade Center Health Program out from under the direction of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

This move would remove the NIOSH out from under the control of Centers for Disease Control (CDC), while leaving the World Trade Center Fund under the control of the CDC. This would change who oversees the fund, and perhaps how it is managed. Critics, including New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, worry that this move could threaten the availability of funds to victims suffering the aftermath of September 11 health effects.

According to the New York Daily News, Schneiderman said, “Our country has a solemn obligation to provide health care to the tens of thousands of survivors and first responders who are still suffering from 9/11-related injuries and illnesses. Congress must act to ensure 9/11 survivors and first responders continue to receive the care that they need and deserve.”

Schneiderman then stressed that NIOSH has the necessary expertise to administer the fund to best effect, citing the institutions’s track record of funding research into September 11 health effects and monitoring individuals’ reports of resultant health problems.

He claims that the Trump administration has offered “no compelling justification” as to why the fund should be moved, and calls the move “unnecessarily disruptive and potentially dangerous.”

Thousands of individuals have relied on the World Trade Center Fund for compensation for physical, emotional, and financial injury caused by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Now that the fund is facing instability, individuals should take action quickly to receive the compensation that they deserve.

Another fund offers compensation to victims of 9/11 — the September 11th Victim’s Compensation Fund. This fund has not been the subject of a potential move in the Trump Administration’s budget plan, and is still a significant source of compensation for victims.

Individuals have received anywhere from hundreds to millions of dollars to ease injury from September 11 heath effects, depending on the severity of their legal claim made. 9/11 injury lawyers can help people navigate the complex process of filing a successful legal claim to receive the funds they need and deserve.

The fund covers individuals who were exposed to toxic chemicals released at Ground Zero, those who were injured during the attacks, wrongful death claims, and others. A wide range of individuals impacted by the tragic terrorist attacks of 9/11 have received compensation from the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund, including:

• First responders
• Firefighters, police officers and EMTs
• Sanitation employees
• Construction employees
• City employees
• Utility employees
• Cleaners
• 9/11 volunteers
• Out of state volunteers
• Employees who worked below Canal Street
• Residents living below Canal Street
• Students enrolled in schools below Canal Street

Don’t let the Washington’s budget proposal jeopardize the compensation that you deserve. Though the World Trade Center Fund faces instability, the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund still offers valuable compensation to victims impacted by the terrorist attacks.