Recent Blog Posts

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, […]

Substantiating a Victim Compensation Fund Claim, both initial eligibility as well as amount of compensation, is an extremely paper-intensive task. A thorough presentation can require reams of documents ranging from medical records to tax returns, utility bills, deeds, leases, pay stubs, time sheets and much, much more. Keeping track of all this material and keeping […]

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 […]

Receiving a favorable compensation decision from the VCF may seem like a hollow victory until you actually have the money in hand, especially if you and your family are struggling to make ends meet. Fortunately, the VCF administrators have taken steps to streamline the payment process and avoid many of the issues and delays that […]

The nature of cancer can make it difficult to link conclusively to an event. However, researchers have determined that exposure to certain known carcinogens can cause cancer. Yet, until June 2012, authorities did not acknowledge the probable link to cancer for hundreds of responders, residents and workers at Ground Zero, the Pentagon and the Shanksville […]

Whenever there is money involved, fraud is a concern. The Victim Compensation Fund is no exception, especially in light of several high-profile cases of fraud that occurred during the administration of the first VCF. Fortunately, it has been very encouraging that cases of fraud have thus far been few and far between in the new […]