McConnell Leads Republican Opposition to 9/11 Health Care Bill
What’s holding up Senate action on the 9/11 health care bill that passed the House by a vote of 268 to 160 with bipartisan support in September? Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s opposition to the bill is the major stumbling block. McConnell has taken no public position, but in private, according to published reports, he has voiced opposition to the bill.
Reports John Toscano in the Queens Gazette:
Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, from Kentucky, makes no effort to hide his anti-NYC feelings in opposing the 9/11 bill, even though many volunteers from outside the state volunteered their efforts to the Ground Zero cleanup and became sick as a result of it.
Washington sources reported McConnell’s opposition is the most serious impediment to passing the measure.
House OKs 9/11 Health Bill, But Senate Action Uncertain
The U.S. House today passed the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (H.R. 847) to provide long-term medical care and monitoring for the first responders, recovery workers and others exposed to the Ground Zero toxic mix of chemicals, jet fuel, asbestos, lead, glass fragments and other debris.
The bill passed 268 to 160, with 13 Republicans joining Democrats in support. Says AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka:
Taking care of those who bravely answered the nation’s call on 9/11 transcends partisan politics and tests the integrity of those serving in Congress, and we thank the 251 Democrats and the 17 Republicans who voted in support of the bill. But, the vast majority of Republicans and business groups, including the Chamber of Commerce, chose to protect the status quo rather than help our heroes. Working families will not forget that choice this November.
In July, House Republicans blocked the bill. The bill’s fate is uncertain because the Senate must approve it and Republicans have the votes to mount a filibuster and block the bill. Also, both chambers will adjourn this week and not return until after the November elections.
House Republicans Block Medical Help for 9/11 Heroes
House Republicans last night blocked a bill that would provide long-term medical care and monitoring for the nearly 60,000 Sept. 11 rescue and recovery workers and community members whose health is at serious risk from their exposure to the contaminated and toxic rubble at Ground Zero of the World Trade Center.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka called the vote a deep disappointment and said:
Helping the thousands of 9/11 responders and others who are now sick as a result of their exposures at the World Trade Center should not be a partisan issue. But sadly, the majority of House Republicans voted against this bill.
The 255-159 vote in favor of the bill included 12 Republicans. But because the bill was on what is known as the suspension calendar used for non-controversial bills, it needed a two-thirds majority to pass. What’s controversial about helping Sept. 11 heroes who faced a toxic mix of chemicals, jet fuel, asbestos, lead, glass fragments and other debris?
9/11 Health Bill Clears Another Hurdle
 |
|
The nearly 60,000 rescue and recovery workers and community members whose health is at serious risk from their exposure to the contaminated and toxic rubble at the 2001 Ground Zero World Trade Center attacks are a step closer to receiving long-term medical care.
Yesterday the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Health subcommittee approved by an overwhelming and bipartisan 25-8 vote the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act (H.R. 847). The bill would establish a medical monitoring and treatment program for the Sept. 11 first responders and the community members at the site of the attacks.
Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y) one of the bill’s chief sponsors, along with Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y), says that while progress has been “painfully slow,”
today we are one important step closer to providing the brave responders and survivors of 9/11′s toxic aftermath the health care and compensation they need and deserve. Read the rest of this entry »
Proposed Settlement Not Nearly Enough for 9/11 Heroes
A proposed settlement has been reached of the more than 10,000 lawsuits by the rescue and recovery workers suffering serious illnesses from the toxic mix of chemicals, jet fuel, asbestos and other debris they were exposed to at Ground Zero of the Sept. 11 World Trade Center attack in 2001.
But congressional and union leaders say much more must be done to provide justice and health care for the nearly 60,000 workers and community members whose health is at risk from their exposure to the contaminated rubble.
Ground Zero Workers Still Suffer from Lung Problems
|
|
A new study finds nearly one-quarter of a sample of firefighters and other first responders and construction workers exposed to the toxic mix of chemicals and debris at Ground Zero during 9/11 rescue and recovery operations continue to suffer from persistent lung problems.
The continuing study by the Mount Sinai Medical Center’s medical monitoring program examined the workers between 2004 and 2007, repeating exams conducted between the middle of 2002 and 2004. Slightly more than 24 percent had abnormal lung function and limited lung capacity, compared with 28 percent in the first study.
