9/11 Injuries

On September 22, 2014, three firefighters who responded to the World Trade Center attacks on 9/11 all died on the same day due to cancer stemming from exposure to hazardous materials and chemicals on that day 13 years ago.  Retired FDNY Lt. Howard Bischoff and firefighters Daniel Heglund and Robert Leaver, who were also retired, […]

Presumptively covered conditions are those that have been definitely linked to 9/11. Generally, the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) covers only injuries and diseases on this list. However, the VCF amends its list periodically. For example, the VCF amended its list to include several types of cancer in October 2012, added prostate cancer in October 2013 […]

Post 9/11, many Ground Zero, Pentagon and Shanksville crash site first responders and lower Manhattan residents and workers experienced Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disorder (GERD). After several studies concluded that GERD could be triggered by the conditions at the attack and crash sites, the medical disorder was included in the list of presumptively covered conditions under the […]

In a 2006 New York Times article, the co-director of Mount Sinai’s World Trade Center Worker and Volunteer Medical Screening Program, Dr. Robin Herbert, stressed the lifelong health consequences faced by ground zero workers: ”There should no longer be any doubt about the health effects of the World Trade Center disaster . . . Our […]

*** UPDATE: Since the date of this blog post, the deadline for filing a claim with the Victim Compensation Fund has been extended until December 18, 2020. *** You may have several options to obtain treatment for your 9/11-related injuries or compensation for the death of your loved one under three primary benefits programs: Victim […]

Tax Consequences of Victim Compensation Fund and Terror-Related Disability Payments For individuals who sustained injuries, and for families who lost loved ones as a result of the September 11th terrorist attacks, there is some tax relief available. In 2002, then-president George W. Bush signed into law the Victims of Terrorism Tax Relief Act of 2001. […]