NEW YORK — First responders with 9/11-related illnesses have been dealt another blow.
Financing for the World Trade Center health program Past 2027 was excluded from the federal budget on Friday, as Congress scrambled to avoid a government shutdown.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer released a statement saying in part: “Republicans must stand up for these heroes and pass 9/11 health care funding once and for all when the new Congress begins.”
“Go back to the capital and do your job,” New York Governor Kathy Hochul added in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
Fire unions are furious about the lack of action
Members of New York City’s Bravest gathered outside Ground Zero on Sunday, next to a Christmas tree decorated with the faces of 343 firefighters who died on September 11, 2001, a reminder to Congress of the pledge to never forget.
“It’s inconceivable that 23 years later we would have to be here on a 17-degree day begging for money to recognize the people who did the work,” said Jim Brosi, president of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association.
“Never Forget means passing the bills that will continue to fund health care for sick and dying first responders,” said Andrew Ansbro, president of the Uniformed Firefighters Association of Greater New York.
Fire department officials say they will continue to push for a permanent law.
“To see that Congress would cut this from all spending in DC is not only embarrassing but insanely disappointing,” Brosi said.
‘You can’t make America great again if you leave the sick behind’
Brosi says 130,000 people with 9/11-related illnesses rely on the program for financial assistance. That includes his late father, Lt. Joe Brosi, who died of cancer after being exposed to toxins at ground zero.
“To take that away from someone, to say you’re not going to find it again after, you know, what you exposed us to after, you know, what the job did is an unfair failure of government,” said Brosi’s son.
Fire department officials say more than 35,000 first responders have been diagnosed with cancer since September 11, and without funding their health will remain at risk.
“On average, we lose three firefighters every month in New York City,” Ansbro said. “We know you can’t make America great again if you leave the sick behind.”
