Hillary Clinton won the first federal funding for medical monitoring of first responders to Ground Zero after the 9/11 attacks. This led to a larger Medical Monitoring Treatment Program and the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, also known as the Zadroga Act.
Our endorsement of the former New York senator for president is based on the facts. She will do more than any other candidate to protect working people and unions. Her actions as New York’s senator 15 years ago shortly after the 9/11 attacks show her conviction for protecting workers’ health.
Working with Sen. Charles Schumer, Clinton fought for and attained $21 billion in federal funding for New York City to allow the city to recover. She was a leader when news surfaced that first responders to Ground Zero were suffering from health issues related to the toxic stew of contaminants left in the attacks’ wake.
While there is much credit to share, Clinton played a huge role in working with U.S. Representatives Carolyn Maloney, Jerrold Nadler, Peter King and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, who succeeded her. Clinton paved the road for Gillibrand to be the lead sponsor of the Zadroga bill in the Senate, which pushed for monitoring and treatment of Ground Zero workers years after 9/11.
In fighting with the White House for help in the days after 9/11, and the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which killed safety warnings about Ground Zero’s air quality hazards, Clinton said, “They knew and they didn’t tell us the truth and the White House told them not to tell us the truth!”
Should Clinton win the White House in November, working people, especially those who selflessly put themselves in harm’s way to help others, know they will have a leader who will have their backs.
