by Mike Hall, Mar 21, 2007

William Gleason was a lieutenant in New York City’s Emergency Medical Service Command and a member of AFSCME District Council 37 on Sept. 11, 2001. He was one of the tens of thousands of workers and volunteers who answered the call for help and streamed to Ground Zero, the toxic, smoke-filled pile of rubble that once was the World Trade Center’s (WTC’s) twin towers until terrorists flew hijacked airliners into the buildings.

Now, forced to retire because of Ground Zero-related health reasons, Gleason, 46, is one of the many thousands of rescue and recovery workers and volunteers—firefighters, police officers, construction workers and others—who are paying a debilitating health care cost—especially in respiratory and pulmonary problems.

Today, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on the extent of Sept. 11 health effects and the steps that have or have not been taken to treat and monitor workers who are suffering from their Ground Zero exposure (click here to read the testimony from all witnesses). Says Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y):

There is a very real health care crisis facing so many people who were around Ground Zero following the Sept. 11 attacks. We have seen so many people get sick and yet we don’t have a long-term commitment from the [Bush] administration to provide for those who need our are help.

Gleason was one of several workers who attended the hearing and described their experiences cleaning up at Ground Zero.

I worked at Ground Zero from the night of September 11 and for the next two days. After that, I was assigned to work at Ground Zero for several more shifts until May 2002.…I began to experience health problems on September 12, 2001, when I could not breathe out of my nose. Shortly thereafter, I developed recurring sinus and upper respiratory infections.

In 2004, Gleason, who, prior to Sept. 11, was an avid swimmer and rock climber who didn’t smoke or drink, began suffering a series of asthma attacks in addition to other respiratory problems. That March, a medical review board found Gleason physically unfit for duty with a permanent respiratory disability “related to his 9/11 WTC exposures.”

I get short of breath when I walk up stairs or even take walks down a long hall. I live with Hyper-Reactive Airway Disease Syndrome (a form of occupational asthma). The attacks have multiple triggers that include the cold as well as hot and humid weather, and even a stranger’s perfume. I have developed sleep apnea and require a machine at night that blows air into my lungs. I now see a cardiologist regularly to monitor my heart as it is possible that my respiratory problems could lead to heart problems.

Senate committee Chairman Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) says the committee’s goal is to

Make sure these individuals receive the level of support they deserve.

Earlier this year, Kennedy, Clinton and Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) introduced legislation to provide nearly $2 billion in grants for medical and mental health monitoring and treatment for those exposed to the dust and toxins at Ground Zero.

Today’s testimony from the occupational and public health experts who testified centered on the scope of the health care problems, the expected growing number of serious Sept. 11-realted health problems and the need for federal funding to monitor and treat victims. The AFL-CIO Executive Council has urged Congress to act immediately to address these pressing needs.

But today’s hearing did not touch on the possible effects of the many early post-Sept. 11 decisions by the Bush White House that downplayed the dangers at Ground Zero.

Last year, we reported how the Bush administration sought to cover up the toxic and chemical hazards workers faced at Ground Zero, including how Bush officials pressured the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to tone down reports about the potential health hazards resulting from the buildings’ collapse.

On Sept. 14, 2001, the Bush administration assured New Yorkers the air in proximity to the World Trade Center debris was safe.