Senator Bill Larkin (R-C, Cornwall-on-Hudson) today reminded residents that time is running out for people to register for the right to file for 9/11-related workers’ compensation.
Less than 100 days remain until the final registration deadline of August 14, 2007.
At least 100,000 workers and volunteers who performed any rescue, recovery or cleanup work in the vicinity of the World Trade Center are eligible to register with the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board. But fewer than 12,000 have done so.
According to New York City’s official estimate, more than 21,000 people who worked for pay or volunteered after 9/11 have developed physical or mental disorders as a result of their exposure to toxic substances and psychologically traumatic experiences in the aftermath of the World Trade Center’s collapse. Right now, hundreds more are experiencing new-onset 9/11-related symptoms each month. No one knows how many more who are now healthy will become sick, or when they will first develop symptoms.
Workers and volunteers who do not register by August 14 will not be eligible to file a claim even if they develop a 9/11-related physical or mental illness in the future.
Any eligible person who registers will have the right to file a 9/11-related workers’ compensation at any time in the future, no matter when 9/11-related symptoms occur. When a claim for a 9/11-related disorder is established, workers’ compensation pays 100 percent of the cost of treatment, including prescriptions and hospitalization.
NYCOSH established a hotline and a website to promote registration. People can go to www.nycosh.org to learn about the eligibility requirements and registration procedure. They can also call the toll-free, 24-hour hotline, 1-866-WTC-2556.
To request an interview with a worker or volunteer who developed an illness as a result of 9/11-related exposures, contact Jonathan Bennett, from NYCOSH, at 212-227-6440 x 14.
