More first responders have died from 9/11-related illnesses than on 9/11
To date, 241 members of the NYPD have died of 9/11-related illnesses — more than 10 times the number of police officers who died in the attack.
On the 18th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks, we think of the 2,977 lives lost that day and the countless others who were affected in some capacity along the way. The effects of that day still linger for many — especially for the first responders who were on the scene.
To date, 241 members of the NYPD died of 9/11-related illnesses — compared to the 23 killed in the attack on the World Trade Center, according to ABC News. The fire department has also lost a significant number of members. To date, 202 FDNY members have died of illnesses related to their service on Sept. 11 or in the immediate aftermath; in the attack itself, 343 members died.
While the most common killer has been cancer, ABC News reports that new research suggests that cardiovascular disease is markedly higher in responders who were first on the scene as well as those who spent protracted periods of time on the pile. Firefighters who were first on the scene were 44% more likely to develop cardiovascular disease than firefighters who arrived the next day, according to a new study published in the medical journal JAMA Network Open by Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University.
Laws for first responders
Many laws related to workers’ compensation and first responders have recently been signed, most notable among them the permanent reauthorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund, which President Donald Trump signed on July 29, 2019.
Under the bill, $10.2 billion will be authorized for the fund for the next 10 years, then additional billions until 2090, essentially covering the surviving 9/11 responders for the rest of their lives, according to Vox. The original September 11th Victim Compensation Fund operated from 2001 to 2004 to compensate those who suffered physical harm or the families of those who were killed due to the terrorist attacks.
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