Victims who have suffered from 9/11 first responders cancer in the years following those terrible attacks may be eligible for compensation. Multiple major funds have sprung up in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, including the September 11^th Victim Compensation Fund and the World Trade Center Health Program, which provide funds and healthcare for first responders and other victims who were injured because of the attacks.

9/11 First Responders Cancer

Many of those who were exposed to dangerous materials and toxins at Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks have since been diagnosed with serious chronic illnesses, including 9/11 first responders cancer. These diseases may have taken years to surface, and some first responders only belatedly discovered that they were affected.

More than one million people were exposed to dangerous Ground Zero toxins, and may have since been diagnosed with 9/11 first responders cancer, including prostate cancer, breast cancer, leukemia, brain cancer, sarcoma, and many others. Those who have been diagnosed with 9/11 first responders cancer may be eligible for compensation from the September 11^th Victim Compensation Fund.

Navigating the paperwork and deadlines necessary to qualify for this fund can be difficult, but an attorney experienced in these matters can help you receive the compensation for which you’re eligible.

Not only is the claims process complicated, but this program is also not guaranteed to last. The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund was closed out in 2004, but later reopened in 2011, and guaranteed through 2020. The World Trade Center Health Program is currently facing some risks as well, including a potential move to the CDC that may have a drastic effect on the services that it can provide for victims.

The current administration has proposed a change in leadership for the World Trade Center Health Program, removing the health program from the purview of the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, and instead move it to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

According to Newsday, Rep. Peter King (R) argued that these changes would hurt the program grievously. Critics say the NIOSH is far better equipped for the variety of diseases and problems caused by toxins at Ground Zero that continue to affect first responders to this day.

Moving the program into the control of the CDC would strip away the many of the program’s current assets.  If the switch is made to the CDC, victims seeking treatment would no longer “have access to all that institutional knowledge, all those doctors, all those scientists that they’ve been used to all along,” King said.

“This was a backdoor attempt to kill a program … to hurt a program which is doing so much good for so many,” King stated during a news conference, in which he and other lawmakers promised to do everything they could to make sure that the proposal would not pass through Congress.

If you or someone you love has suffered from 9/11 first responders cancer, you may be able to receive compensation through one September 11 Victim Compensation Fund.