Days before the 13th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, elected officials from New York called on Congress to reauthorize federal legislation to compensate first responders who became ill working at ground zero, reports the Associated Press.
The two main components of the law are set to expire in 2015 and 2016.
The Zadroga Act, named after a responder who died after working at ground zero, became law in 2010. Its two components — a victims compensation fund and a medical treatment fund — have paid out more than $1.1 billion.
The elected officials, who pointed to medical studies that link a variety of illnesses and cancers to the toxins spread by the World Trade Center collapse, said Monday that they want to reauthorize it for 25 more years.
