Sick 9/11 Workers Sue WTC Insurance Fund

Ground Zero Workers Demand That $1B Trade Center Insurance Fund Pay For Their Health Care

(AP)  Ailing ground zero workers went to court Tuesday to demand that the company overseeing a $1 billion Sept. 11 insurance fund spend the money to pay for their health care.

The workers have already filed a class-action lawsuit claiming the toxic dust from the World Trade Center site gave them serious, sometimes fatal diseases. On Tuesday, they sought compensation from the WTC Captive Insurance Co., the company in charge of money appropriated by Congress to deal with Sept. 11 health-related claims.

"The WTC Captive has consistently refused to pay any of the ground zero workers who have become ill on the work site, including any compensation" for lost salaries, pain and suffering, medical treatment, medical monitoring or burial expenses, said the lawsuit, filed in Manhattan's state Supreme Court.

It was filed by attorneys representing thousands who became ill after working to clean up the site while breathing toxic trade center dust, including more than 100 who have died.

"She hasn't paid a penny to one of my 10,000 people," David Worby, an attorney representing the workers, said of the company's CEO, Christine LaSala. "It was their mandate."

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Read more about the health crisis stemming from 9/11.

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Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who was named in the suit along with LaSala and board members, said Tuesday that attorneys are wrong about the company's structure.

"They just don't know the facts. The truth of the matter is, Congress didn't set up a victims' compensation fund," the mayor said. "We'd like them to do that, we've asked for that, they set up a captive insurance company. And the insurance company can only pay out monies if somebody sues us in court and wins a judgment against us."

Congress directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to set up the fund, appropriating up to $1 billion "to establish a captive insurance company or other appropriate insurance mechanism for claims arising from debris removal, which may include claims made by city employees," according to the 2003 resolution.

The lawsuit, relying on testimony from federal officials over the years about the fund's purpose, said officials meant for the money to be used to compensate ailing workers. Federal and state governments never said "that a captive insurance company be established solely to defend the city of New York and its contractors from all rescue, recovery and debris removal related claims, at all costs," the lawsuit said.

In this case, the term "captive" refers to an entity created specifically to cover 9/11-related claims for the New York City government.

Since it began operating in 2004, the company has spent more than $73 million of the insurance money in legal fees and other expenses, the lawsuit says.

Worby and other attorneys plan to go to Washington later this week to lobby congressional leaders to urge the company to make the $1 billion available immediately for sick workers.

The largest study conducted of about 20,000 ground zero workers reported last year that 70 percent of patients suffer respiratory disease years after the cleanup. The city earlier this year added to its Sept. 11 death toll a woman who died in 2002 of lung disease, five months after being caught in the dust cloud of the collapsing twin towers.

Bloomberg and other city officials have estimated the cost of caring for the workers who are sick or who could become sick at $393 million a year and urged the federal government to pay for their treatment and monitoring.

[oakishpines]

hitlers don't just stop killing jews and begin instead to feed jews that they may feed the world,

the congress will not stop filling prisons with poor minorities and start feeding them that thay may feed the world,

the congress will not stop filling wars with mideasts and start feeding them that they may feed the world,

the congress will not stop stfufing closets with immigrants stacked 20 high and start feeding them that they may feed the world,

the congress will not stop daring drugged ten year olds and start feeding them that they may feed the world,

the congress will not stop spanking naked four year olds and start feeding them that they may feedbthe world

and so on and so forth

[drivelphobe]

Doesn't New York require Workmans' Compensation to cover the disability and medical payments resulting form on-the-job injuries or illness? If the workers were volunteer, then the Government should pay the necessary charges for those affected. Don't many of these workers have their own health insurance? There should be strong enforcement of the non-duplication of benefits provisions so there will be minimal fraudulent claims. Plenty of people will be attempting to benefit financially from this, like those housewives Ann Coulter discusssed.

[hangelle]

Ann Coulter?! You mention Ann Coulter and expect civil discussion? Shame on you!

[bananaamy]

I say Good For Them! - but, they should not have to sue%u2026..
The 9-11 workers are as much a victim as those that suffered from the initial attack.
If they have health issues because of this then we as a society need to do what is right and support the people that gave their time an effort so unselfishly during the aftermath of Sept 11th.

[teeus]

oakishpines...Um, wha...?

[teeus]

"Ann Coulter discusssed..."
drivelphobe

Discussed? Nooooo. Slandered is more like it. She attacked them simply because they were pushing for the administration to accept the 9/11 commission's recomendations.

[feelfree1]

Re: "Sick 9/11 Workers Sue WTC Insurance Fund"

Good. They deserve to be compensated.

###

According to various polls, most Americans still don't believe the "official" explanation of the events of 9/11/01. Not even the 9/11 Commissioners believed the Pentagon and FAA versions of the events on that day.

For those that remain curious, I would like to suggest a few good films on this topic-

For a short, but powerful primer, check out:

"The Third Stage"

http://video.google.ca/videoplay?docid=-5224963246223576086&q=%22third+stage%22

For a more in-depth look, see:

%u201CImprobable Collapse%u201D 9/11 WTC

(Part 1 here)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUMKP4WaMgM

and %u20189/11 Press For Truth%u2019

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5589099104255077250

Finally, for an even broader perspective, check out:

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=zeitgeist

[sshard]

So much is being asked of American men and women. They have made great sacrifices with their health and lives in these troubled times. From the front lines of Iraq to American soil they gave what they could to insure the our way of lfe. And what can they expect in return? Nothing but fine words and pat on the back. For the maimed, the dying and sick of all men and women who had put themselves at risk for America and for the American people, this latest news of 9/11 workers having to sue for help, condemns us all and our society. When great sacrifices are judged by the measure of the dollar, we have lost our humanity.

[bareemperor]

Maybe if Bu$hCo hadn't tried to cover up the true nature of 9/11...
The White House lied about air quality in NYC so they could destroy the evidence.

And SeeBS - horrible use of ads...

[tnt1954]

for good health you need food, clothing, shelter,
medicine and other health care methods and
if you want all that provided at government
expense, you might as well just become a
communist country. if you want us to become
the union of soviet america, it can easily
be arranged. go ahead sue yourselves the
People some more. it comes out of your
own pocket. that's what government of the
People by the People and for the People is,
pure communism. enjoy. pay those taxes
with good cheer. uncle sam loves a cheerful
giver.

[toolmangler-2009]

oakishpines...Um, wha...?
Posted by teeus at 05:02 PM : Jul 17, 2007


Pay no attention to this one, as Cptn Kirk once said "too much LDS"

[zootallures2]

Make the PNAC, the Bush family, the Bin Ladins, Carlisle Group, the US military, Larry Silverstein, Saudi Arabia, the oil companies, and Israel pay.

[drinuk]

snidegrass, you are a first class right wing idiot. There is no difference between a communist state and one run by the likes of Bush, Rockafella and Gates. They both want the same thing, world domination and population control, only the method is different, there is nothing to choose between them. The end result is that ordinary folk suffer and whilst you spout off about taxes, Big Pharma is raping your country and killing your kids with appraval of the majority in your government. Not to mention bankrupting the health budget.

[gunnerone2]

One billion dollars for health care for the WTC workers is simply being kept by this insurance co? Someone should go to jail over this.

To oakishpines. ?

[drinuk]

America, if you want to stop all this nonsense put Dr Ron Paul in the White House.