Hansen & Rosasco, LLP

The 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) was created to provide financial assistance to Pentagon workers and others who were present at the Pentagon and other exposure zones during the attacks, as well as those who may have been exposed to toxic substances as a result. The program provides compensation not only for physical injuries that day but also for illnesses such as cancer or breathing/digestive disorders that often take many years (sometimes decades) to develop. Available tax-free compensation includes economic and non-economic(pain & suffering) awards, as well as wrongful death damages for families who, at any time over the past 20-plus years, lost a loved one who was at the Pentagon during or the months after the attacks.

Nearly 3,000 people died in the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. In the days, weeks, and months that followed, thousands of first responders and volunteers worked tirelessly on the rescue, recovery, and cleanup operations at Ground Zero in New York City, and tens of thousands of individuals lived, worked, or attended school in the area. This post will discuss compensation for families of deceased 9/11 victims.

Special Master Rupa Bhattacharyya Farewell – Dan Hansen and Troy Rosasco met with 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Special Master Rupa Bhattacharyya on a conference call last week as she graciously said goodbye to the 9/11 attorneys she has worked with for almost last six years. Ms. Bhattacharyya shared the following thoughts about the 9/11 lawyers she has worked with:

Downtown workers are, by far, the largest group of people sickened by the toxic 9/11 fallout. It is estimated that at least 300,000 downtown workers were exposed to the same toxic dust and fumes as the first responders. Since 911, at least 15 employees/vendors at Century 21 have been certified with 9/11-related medical conditions, and at least two have died. Twenty-one shoppers at the department store on 9/11 also received diagnoses for 9/11-related illnesses, as have 19 first responders who conducted recovery operations in the building. Did you know that the effects of 9/11 also impact retail workers?

​Diagnosed with 9/11-Related Leukemia: Now What? Recently, researchers from New York teamed up with scientists from Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center to conduct a study to determine if first responders who were present in the Lower Manhattan exposure area on 9/11 or in the months that followed had a higher risk of developing genetic mutations that can lead to blood cancers such as leukemia. This recent study adds more support to the already proven link between exposure to 9/11 toxins – by first responders, downtown workers, residents, students, and others – and leukemia and other forms of blood cancers.

Learn more about ​New Multi-Cancer Screening Tool to Help Detect Cancer Earlier. People in the 9/11 community were exposed to several cancer-causing substances through the toxic dust at Ground Zero. For these patients, a new multi-cancer early detection cancer screening test called Galleri shows promise in finding more types of cancers in earlier stages of development than ever before. Finding and treating cancers early has long been proven to give patients the best hope of recovery and survival.

9/11 VCF Special Master Rupa Bhattacharyya will be leaving her position with the US Attorney General’s office at the end of April 2022, after 27 years in federal government service, and nearly six years as the VCF Special Master. She will join Georgetown University Law Center’s Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection.

Anyone familiar with the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) has likely heard mention of the  9/11 Fund’s Special Master. But fewer understand the role of the Special Master. In this blog, we explore the function served by the VCF Special Master in administering the VCF and supporting the individuals and families who receive benefits from it.