‘9/11 community is literally scared to death that they may lose their chemotherapy appointments,’ attorney says
By Emma Colton Fox News | September 29, 2023
First responders suffering from illnesses years after rescuing people from the carnage of 9/11 are worried they could be left in health care limbo if the government shuts down advocates told Fox News Digital — though officials insist services won’t be interrupted even if no spending deal is struck.
“It’s amazing how [the U.S. government has] billions of dollars to fund other nations’ issues. And it’s amazing how we’re funding all the illegal immigrants, which are costing New York City billions of dollars, yet we can’t find funds to help those who keep the city moving,” Oren Barzilay, president of FDNY EMS Local 2507, told Fox News Digital in an interview Thursday.
“It’s disturbing, and it’s frustrating to know that we’re taking care of everybody else around the corner of the world, and we can take care of our own,” he added.
Barzilay, who also responded on the day of the attacks, said if the government is shut down and the 9/11 health and compensation programs are stalled, it could lead to more people dying or dying sooner than expected.
“It’s going to hurt a lot of people if there’s no funding fo the medical needs of the World Trade Center community. It may even shorten people’s lives sooner than expected. These benefits, maintaining people [to] continue to live. And if there’s a shutdown and there’s no funding, you may see this number increase rapidly,” he said.