109 HRES 1061 IH: Requesting the Department of Health and U.S. House of Representatives 2006-09-29 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

IV 109th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 1061 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 29, 2006 Mr. Fossella (for himself and Mrs. Maloney) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce RESOLUTION Requesting the Department of Health and Human Services to outline the Federal Government’s responsibilities, taking into account the responsibilities and actions of the State and local governments, to support a program for medically monitoring and treating all individuals who were exposed to the toxins of Ground Zero on 9/11.

Whereas on the morning of September 11, 2001, while Americans were attending to their daily routines, terrorists hijacked four civilian aircraft, crashing two of them into the towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and a third into the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C.; Whereas as a result of the attacks on the World Trade Center, towers one, two and seven collapsed releasing pulverized materials that are known to cause adverse health effects; Whereas the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Program has documented 70 percent of screened 9/11 responders have experienced respiratory problems following the attacks and 60 percent continue to experience respiratory problems; Whereas the New York City Fire Department has documented that, on average, a firefighter who responded to the World Trade Center has experienced a loss of 12 years of lung capacity; Whereas, the New York City Fire Department and the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Program have both documented extensive mental health effects on rescue and recovery workers; Whereas rescue and recovery workers came from across the country to assist in the rescue, recovery and clean-up efforts of the attacks; Whereas the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Michael Leavitt, has appointed Dr. John Howard as the Federal coordinator of 9/11 health and has announced a task force on 9/11 health; Whereas there exists a joint responsibility on the part of the Federal, State, and local governments serving affected populations to address the health needs of rescue and recovery workers who responded to Ground Zero on 9/11; and Whereas the passage of five years since September 11, 2001, has provided concrete medical evidence of continued and persistent health effects: Now, therefore, be it

That the House of Representatives requests the Department of Health and Human Service— (1)to outline the Federal Government’s responsibilities, taking into account the responsibilities and actions of the State and local governments, to support a program for medically monitoring and treating all individuals who were exposed to the toxins of Ground Zero on 9/11; and (2)to submit the outline to Congress and the President as quickly as practical.