Garbarino Announces Expansion of 9/11 Health Program To Include Pentagon & Shanksville Responders

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman Andrew R. Garbarino (R-NY-02) is proud to announce that as of  today, September 11, 2024, all 9/11 responders to the Pentagon and Shanksville who were active-duty DOD military, soldiers and sailors, as well as civilians and other Federal employees, will now be able to join the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP). Previously, some responders to the Pentagon and Shanksville sites were prevented from joining the program.

Thanks to the combined efforts of Rep. Garbarino, Senator Gillibrand (D-NY), Senator Braun (R-IN), Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY), and Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-12), Anthony D’Esposito (R-NY-4), and Dan Goldman (D-NY-10), a provision to allow excluded 9/11 responders at the Pentagon and Shanksville sites to join the WTCHP was included in the Fiscal Year 2024 National Defense Authorization Act (FY24 NDAA). $444 million to address the program’s funding shortfall was also included in the FY24 NDAA. Today, the U.S. Health and Human Services Department officially released its rule expanding eligibility for the WTCHP.

"September 11, 2001, was a horrific day for New York, for our country, and for the world. It is our duty to ensure that all survivors and responders still suffering today from 9/11-related illnesses are given access to the health care they need," said Rep. Garbarino. "Whether caused by exposure in lower Manhattan, Shanksville, Pennsylvania, or at the Pentagon, all 9/11-related illnesses are the result of a foreign terror attack on America. I am proud to have helped secure language in the NDAA to enable excluded responders to participate in the WTCHP and I will continue to do everything I can to ensure 9/11 responders, survivors, and families are taken care of."

Rep. Garbarino is also the House Sponsor of the 9/11 Responder and Survivor Health Funding Correction Act of 2024 which would provide permanent and mandatory funding for the WTCHP and update an outdated funding formula to prevent a future funding shortfall and ensure that survivors and first responders don’t lose access to care. Without additional funding, the WTCHP will have to start making cuts to services for 9/11 responders and survivors and start turning away new responders and survivors who become sick from 9/11-related conditions.

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