I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1638 
To extend and improve protections and services to individuals directly im-
pacted by the terrorist attack in New York City on September 11, 
2001, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 22, 2007 
Mrs. MALONEY of New York (for herself, Mr. FOSSELLA, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. 
SHAYS, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. MCHUGH, Mr. HALL of New York, Mr. 
MCNULTY, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. GRIJALVA, and Mr. MCCOTTER) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for 
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To extend and improve protections and services to individuals 
directly impacted by the terrorist attack in New York 
City on September 11, 2001, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act’’. 
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(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings. 
TITLE I—EXTENDING PROTECTIONS AND SERVICES TO THOSE 
EXPOSED TO TOXINS FROM 9/11 
Sec. 101. Extending protections and services to those exposed to toxins from 
9/11. 
Sec. 102. Research regarding certain health conditions. 
Sec. 103. Programs regarding attack at Pentagon. 
TITLE II—9/11 HEALTH EMERGENCY COORDINATING COUNCIL 
Sec. 201. Establishment. 
Sec. 202. Membership. 
Sec. 203. Meetings. 
Sec. 204. Reports. 
Sec. 205. Authorization of appropriations. 
TITLE III—SEPTEMBER 11 VICTIM COMPENSATION FUND OF 2001 
Sec. 301. Deadline extension for certain claims under September 11 Victim 
Compensation Fund of 2001. 
Sec. 302. Exception to single claim requirement in certain circumstances. 
Sec. 303. Eligibility of claimants suffering from psychological harm. 
Sec. 304. Immediate aftermath defined. 
TITLE IV—PROGRAMS OF THE NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF 
HEALTH AND MENTAL HYGIENE 
Sec. 401. World Trade Center Health Registry. 
Sec. 402. Mental health services. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Thousands of rescue workers who responded 
to the areas devastated by the terrorist attacks of 
September 11, local residents, office and area work-
ers, and school children continue to suffer significant 
medical problems as a result of compromised air 
quality and the release of other toxins from the at-
tack sites. 
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(2) In a September 2006 peer-reviewed study 
conducted by the World Trade Center Medical Moni-
toring Program, of 9,500 World Trade Center re-
sponders, almost 70 percent of World Trade Center 
responders had a new or worsened respiratory symp-
tom that developed during or after their time work-
ing at the World Trade Center; among the respond-
ers who were asymptomatic before 9/11, 61 percent 
developed respiratory symptoms while working at the 
World Trade Center; close to 60 percent still had a 
new or worsened respiratory symptom at the time of 
their examination; one-third had abnormal pul-
monary function tests; and severe respiratory condi-
tions including pneumonia were significantly more 
common in the 6 months after 9/11 than in the 
prior 6 months. 
(3) An April 2006 study documented that, on 
average, a New York City firefighter who responded 
to the World Trade Center has experienced a loss of 
12 years of lung capacity. 
(4) A peer-reviewed study of residents who lived 
near the World Trade Center titled ‘‘The World 
Trade Center Residents’ Respiratory Health Study: 
New Onset Respiratory Symptoms and Pulmonary 
Function’’, found that data demonstrated a three 
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fold increase in new-onset, persistent lower res-
piratory symptoms in residents near the former 
World Trade Center as compared to a control popu-
lation. 
(5) Previous research on the health impacts of 
the devastation caused by the September 11 terrorist 
attacks has shown relationships between the air 
quality from Ground Zero and a host of health im-
pacts, including lower pregnancy rates, lower birth 
weights in babies born 9 months after the disaster, 
higher rates of respiratory and lung disorders, and 
a variety of post-disaster mental health conditions 
(including posttraumatic stress disorder) in workers 
and residents near Ground Zero. 
(6) Federal funding allocated for the moni-
toring of rescue workers’ health is not sufficient to 
ensure the long-term study of health impacts of Sep-
tember 11. 
(7) The Federal funding allocated for medical 
monitoring does not provide for the medical moni-
toring of New York City area residents, office and 
area workers, schoolchildren, or Federal employees 
who responded to the terrorist attacks of September 
11, 2001. 
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(8) A significant portion of those who re-
sponded to the September 11 aftermath have no 
health insurance, lost their health insurance as a re-
sult of the attacks, or have inadequate health insur-
ance for the medical conditions they developed as a 
result of recovery work at the World Trade Center 
site. 
(9) The Federal program to provide medical 
treatments to those who responded to the September 
11 aftermath, and who continue to experience health 
problems as a result, was finally established more 
than five years after the attacks, but is not ade-
quately funded and is projected to exhaust all Fed-
eral funding before the end of fiscal year 2007. 
(10) Rescue workers and volunteers seeking 
workers compensation have reported that their appli-
cations have been denied, delayed for months, or re-
directed, instead of receiving assistance in a timely 
and supportive manner. 
(11) A February 2007 report released by the 
City of New York revealed that 410,000 people were 
‘‘heavily exposed’’, to the toxins of Ground Zero. 
The report also found that an estimated 30,000 re-
sponders are sick yet 21,000 of them do not have 
adequate health insurance. 
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(12) The September 11 Victim Compensation 
Fund of 2001 was established to provide compensa-
tion to individuals who were physically injured or 
killed as a result of the terrorist-related aircraft 
crashes of September 11, 2001. 
(13) The deadline for filing claims for com-
pensation under the Victim Compensation Fund was 
December 22, 2003. 
(14) Some individuals did not know they were 
eligible to file claims for compensation for injuries or 
did not know they had suffered physical harm as a 
result of the terrorist-related aircraft crashes until 
after the December 22, 2003, deadline. 
(15) Further research is needed to evaluate 
more comprehensively the extent of the health im-
pacts of September 11, including research for 
emerging health problems such as cancer, which 
have been predicted. 
(16) Research is needed regarding possible 
treatment for the illnesses and injuries of September 
11. 
(17) The Federal response to medical and fi-
nancial issues arising from the September 11 re-
sponse efforts needs a comprehensive, coordinated 
long-term response in order to meet the needs of all 
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