Congress is attempting to pass a bill to permanently fund the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) to ensure World Trade Center (WTC) cancer victims and other related ailments are taken care of.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand are co-sponsoring the Never Forget the Heroes Act that would guarantee funding through 2090.

In February 2019, the fund’s managers warned that the account was quickly dissipating and expressed concerns about the ability to fulfill pending claims. Funds were so depleted that more recent claims are being paid 50 percent to 70 percent less than earlier ones.

The Never Forget the Heroes Act also would allow reimbursements to claimants who received lower dollar amounts due to a dearth of funds at the time their claims were initially processed.

WTC Cancer Diagnoses Continue

The VCF provides families of those who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks and injured survivors. It initially operated from 2001 to 2004, during which time more than $7 billion was paid out, according to CNN.

In 2011, President Barack Obama reactivated the VCF under the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Reauthorization Act, which provides lifetime health coverage for victims and allows claimants to submit applications through Dec. 18, 2020. Since re-opemning, the fund has paid more than 23,000 additional claimants $5 billion.

Despite the attackas occurring 17 years ago, Rep. Maloney said the number of people to die because of exposure to toxins during 9/11 could exceed 2,997, which is the number who died in the attacks.

Victims diagnosed with WTC cancers include first- responders, volunteers, area workers, students and others who lived near Ground Zero. These people suffered extensive exposure to a variety of carcinogens. Asbestos, fiberglass, mercury, benzene, jet fuel and more clouded the air in the days, weeks and months after the terrorists steered airplanes into each of the twin towers.

Some contaminants have latent periods. Airborne asbestos fibers that are breathed or swallowed can burrow in deep tissue where they give rise to cancer 15 to 50 years after initial exposure. According to the National Resources Defense Council, nearly 400 tons of asbestos was used to build the World Trade Center.

More than 65 WTC cancer types– cancers caused by carcinogens emitted from the attacks — have been identified, including breast, thyroid, prostate, lung, pancreatic, leukemia, multiple myeloma, esophageal and mesothelioma.

Many residents returned to work and to school within weeks of the tragedy, in part because the then Environmental Protection Agency Adsministrator Christie Whitman publicly announced a week after the attacks that the air was safe to breathe. Not long after, people began getting very sick.

To qualify to receive money from the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund, you have to provide clear evidence that you were present in Lower Manhattan, below Canal Street, between Sept. 11, 2001, and May 31, 2002. Your WTC cancer diagnosis must have been provided four years or more after exposure, or one year or more after exposure for blood and bone cancers. An experienced lawyer can help you navigate the complicated process and ensure you submit the proper documentation to have your claim processed quickly and smoothly.