Attorneys Troy Rosasco and Daniel J. Hansen Announce Reopening of 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund

PRLog (Press Release) - Oct. 3, 2011 - Troy Rosasco, Partner, Turley, Redmond, Rosasco & Rosasco, LLP, and Daniel J Hansen, Partner, Turley, Hansen & Partners, have announced that the James Zadroga 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund is reopened and urge those to submit their claims if they have not yet already done so.

On October 3, Sheila Birnbaum, Special Master, 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, is expected to reopen the $2.775 billion fund. Those who are eligible to file a claim are police officers, firefighters, Emergency Medical Service workers, construction workers, cleanup workers, utility workers, volunteers and original survivors. These workers or volunteers had to be in the Ground Zero area or the “debris removal area” between September 11, 2011 and May 30, 2002 in order to be eligible.

Although the coverage area has expanded from Reade Street to Canal Street — allowing thousands more who lived and worked in the area to be eligible for the fund — the VCF will not cover cancers, but will include lung disease and other respiratory-related illnesses. Three Congressional members from New York — Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler and Peter King — have urged the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to include cancer on the list of diseases to be covered under the VCF based on a study performed by the Fire Department of New York (FDNY) and published in the prestigious medical journal The Lancet which links exposure to toxins at the Ground Zero site to cancer.

“We urge those who have yet to file a claim to do so immediately,” Mr. Rosasco said. “Anybody who was sickened as the result of being exposed to carcinogens while working at Ground Zero is entitled to the fund. Those who worked at the site were unaware of the health risks at the time should get the financial compensation they justly deserve.”

“We are glad to see Ms. Birnbaum finally reopen the Victim Compensation Fund for those who worked tirelessly at the Ground Zero site,” Mr. Hansen said. “While it is good to see the coverage area expand, we are disappointed that the fund does not cover cancer. We hope that our elected officials are successful in getting NIOSH to read the FDNY’s findings that were published in a highly regarded medical journal and reconsider their decision.”

For more information, call 1(855) WTC-INFO or visit www.zadrogaclaimsinfo.com.