Guy Bocicaut of Norwalk, remembers racing to Lower Manhattan a day after the 9/11 attacks, along with other volunteers from the Salvation Army.
Bocicaut remembers seeing the utter devastation of the attacks, and helped distribute body bags. He also remembers seeing a fog, but he later found out it was something else.
“A lot of people who were there day in and day out for several days, might have been affected health wise, by the dust, all the carcinogens that were flying in the air that we didn't know what they were,” Bocicaut said.
Thousands who participated in the rescue and recovery efforts at Ground Zero in New York ended up suffering from health complications as a result. After years of advocacy they finally received federal funding to help with health care costs and other benefits.
The federal government’s attempts at scaling back programs associated with those benefits, were quickly reversed after outcry from advocates and politicians from the tri-state area.
However, some still worry about the availability of future access to these programs.
Bocicaut did not participate in these programs and did not get sick. But he is an advocate for those who did. He said providing for those volunteers and rescue workers should not be up for debate.
“I think we should take care of them, the country has an obligation to take care of them,” Bocicaut said.
The World Trade Center Health Program was one of several programs at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) impacted by broader federal staffing cuts earlier this year.
The cuts were reversed after outcry from victims' families and advocates. State Rep. Bill Heffernan, a Democrat, says lawmakers are continuing to keep a watchful eye on the program.
Heffernan was also a firefighter at the site of the attacks on the World Trade Center, known at the time as The Pile . He was later diagnosed with cancer, but isn’t sure if his time spent at the site contributed to his diagnosis.
While the programs now enjoy broad political support, Heffernan remembers how much work went into getting those benefits in the first place.
Heffernan said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, (D-CT), supported the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. It wasnamed after a New York City Police Department officer who is considered the first NYPD death confirmed to be linked to the recovery efforts.
The funding for the health care ended up getting extended in 2015 until 2090. But while the programis not at risk; any risk accessing that care, Heffernansaid, needs to be closely watched.
“I know that everyone threatens things now, this is going to be cut, that's going to be cut, and we're on the ball,” Heffernan said. “We're keeping an eye on it. So, I want to make sure that those benefits don't go anywhere.”
Republican State Sen.Tony Hwang, who represents Fairfield, was among those who honored 9/11 victims at the state’s annual remembrance ceremony at Sherwood Island State Park in Westport Thursday. While speaking at the event, Hwang defended the benefits for 9/11 first responders.
“God bless all of those that have been adversely impacted by a senseless and terrible tragedy, and let us make sure that we protect and ensure their health and safety into the future year,” Hwang said. “It is our obligation as a society to ensure that we do that.”
Blumenthal’s son, State Rep. Matt Blumenthal, who represents Stamford,said access to the programs have never had a guaranteed future. And while the programs are safe, any impact to them should be defended against, underscoring how raw the attacks remain on the tri-state area.
“It's vital that we continue to preserve them, to make sure that everyone who sacrificed that day is taken care of, and that their sacrifice was not in vain,” Blumenthal said.
