Anyone familiar with the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) has likely heard mention of the 9/11 Fund’s Special Master. But fewer understand the role of the Special Master. In this blog, we explore the function served by the VCF Special Master in administering the VCF and supporting the individuals and families who receive benefits from it.
The September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) doesn’t only provide compensation for wage loss suffered by those who incurred a 9/11-related illness as a result of their exposure to the toxins at the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attack sites. It also provides compensation for the severity of a 9/11 illness and the impact that the illness has had on their lives. To claim this compensation – known as pain-and-suffering damages – many claimants opt to provide a victim impact statement along with their claim.
Many people know that federal benefits programs exist for the responders and survivors of the terror attacks on 9/11, who are now suffering from illnesses caused by their exposure to the toxic dust at the attack sites. Less well-known, however, is that these programs also provide benefits for people who suffered physical injuries as a result of the attacks.
In August 2021, administrators of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) issued a Special Report coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks. They reported that the Fund had given awards to over 40,000 people 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Payouts totaling more than $8.95 billion, in the ten years since Congress had reauthorized the VCF via the Zadroga Act.
The Victim Compensation Fund provides financial benefits to individuals afflicted with illnesses related to exposure to the toxic dust plume at and around Ground Zero. If you were exposed to toxic materials at Ground Zero on 9/11 or in the months that followed (anybody who was present south of Canal Street between 9/11 and May 30, 2002 was, in fact, exposed), and you now suffer from cancer, you may have the right to receive financial compensation from the VCF. Read on to learn more about the types of cancers associated with 9/11 toxic exposure, and how to obtain money to help you pay for care and other expenses.
More than 20 years have passed since the terror attacks of 9/11. Unfortunately, for many of the first responders, general responders, or survivors who lived, worked, or attended school or daycare in lower Manhattan on the day of the attacks or in the months that followed, the nightmare continues. Even now, they suffer from illnesses due to their exposure to toxins released when the World Trade Center towers collapsed and during the eight and a half months of cleanup that followed. Below you can learn: What Is the Zadroga Act?
The 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, Explained: “Less than 24 hours from now, I will start my 69th round of chemotherapy,” said retired NYPD bomb squad Detective and 9/11 responder Luis Alvarez, at a House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing in 2019. “I should not be here with you, but you made me come. You made me come because I will not stand by and watch as my friends with cancer from 9/11, like me, are valued less than anyone else is, because of when they get sick or die.”
Many people know a federal program compensates 9/11 first responders who suffered serious medical conditions due to toxic exposure they incurred at one of the September 11 terror attack sites. What many people do not know is 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Helps More Than First Responders.
What are the WTC Health Program Eligibility Requirements? In the twenty years since the terror attacks of 9/11, life has gone on in many ways. However, for those who were injured by the terror attacks in New York City, at the Pentagon, and the crash site in Shanksville, PA, or exposed to toxins at the site, life has featured hospitals, doctors, and—in many cases—an untimely death from 9/11-related conditions.
According to a recent report from NBC News, the company that administers WTC Health Program benefits to program members living outside of New York City has lost its contract with the federal government. The company, LHI, will remain at its post until mid-2022, when the new vendor takes over its duties.
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