Efforts to authorize 9/11 fund underway
On Feb. 25, NAPO attended a press confer-
ence to announce the reintroduction of the Nev-
er Forget the Heroes: Permanent Authorization
of the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Act (S.
546/H.R. 1327). The bill’s sponsors, Senators
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Cory Gardner (R-
Colo.) and Representatives Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Peter
King (R-N.Y.), kicked off the press conference, followed by New
York City fire and police union leaders, including Pat Lynch,
president of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association of the City
of New York — a NAPO member — and Jon Stewart, formerly
of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart and a stalwart supporter
of 9/11 first responders. Victims and first responders suffering
from 9/11 health-related illnesses also told their stories at the
press conference.
In 2015, Congress, recognizing the importance of these pro-
grams, reauthorized the World Trade Center Health Program
until 2090, and reauthorized and fully funded the 9/11 Victim
Compensation Fund (VCF) at $7.3 billion for five years. Unfortu-
nately, this has proven not to be enough. In September 2018, the
Special Master of the VCF, Rupa Bhattacharyya, announced that
given the significant increase in claims just from the last year
alone, the fund may not be able to fully compensate all claims.
The VCF saw a 36 percent increase in claims between Sep-
tember 2017 and September 2018, and a 94 percent increase
in eligible “deceased claims” — claims by families of 9/11 sur-
vivors who succumbed to their 9/11-related illnesses. Further,
as of June 2018, 88,484 first responders and survivors have reg-
istered with the World Trade Center Health Program, of which
approximately 10,000 have a 9/11-related cancer. In 2018 alone,
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the health program saw more than a 260 percent in-
crease in participants.
The situation is dire and on Feb. 15, the Special
Master declared in the VCF’s seventh annual status
report that there is only $2.375 billion left of the
$7.375 billion that Congress appropriated in 2015
to compensate all pending and anticipated claims through Dec.
18, 2020. The Special Master further noted that there has been a
dramatic increase in claims over the past four months — includ-
ing 4,800 compensation claims filed in January alone.
The Special Master has determined that there is insufficient
funding remaining in the VCF to fully pay all current and pro-
jected claims; therefore, she is adjusting VCF policies and pro-
cedures to reduce payout amounts to ensure that all remaining
and future VCF claims receive at least some level of award. The
award reductions will apply to all pending claims, regardless of
when they were filed.
Under these revised policies, and effective for any award the
VCF determines on or after Feb. 25, the calculated economic
and noneconomic loss amounts will be reduced by 50 percent if
the claim was received prior to Feb. 1. For claims submitted after
Feb. 1, the calculated economic and noneconomic loss amounts
will be reduced by 70 percent. Appeal determinations made on
or after Feb. 25 for appeals filed on awards issued prior to Feb. 25
will not be subject to percentage reductions, regardless of when
the hearing is held.
While this announcement by the Special Master is alarming,
the Never Forget the Heroes: Permanent Authorization of the
9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Act was drafted to address this
possibility.