Statement of 911 Health Watch on the Release of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund 4th Annual Report

February 9, 2016

For Immediate Release from 911 Health Watch
February 9th, 2016
Press Contact: Benjamin Chevat (646) 634-9103
ben.chevat@911healthwatch.org

Statement of 911 Health Watch on the Release of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund 4th Annual Report

“Today’s release by the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund of its 4th Annual Report along with updated statistics on its progress to date is very timely given the recent successful reauthorization of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund for an additional five years along with an additional 4.6 billion dollars in funding.

“The VCF’s report that by the close of 2015 it had made over 9,100 determinations totaling 1.8 billion dollars in compensation shows the continued clear and substantial progress that the Fund has been making in both processing claims and making determinations for compensation for injured and ill 9/11 Responders, Survivors and their families.

“The Special Master and the staff of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund will need to not only continue this level of effort but with the extension of the Fund and additional resources Congress has given it they will need to increase their efforts to fulfill their new responsibilities and keep to its schedule for implementation of the reauthorization.

911 Health Watch wants to commend the Special Master and her staff for the work they have continued to do in improving the processing of claims and for the cooperative efforts they have made with the 9/11 Responder and Survivor community. “

Here are some of the statistics that the Special Master reported on:

  • The report states that as of January 2, 2015 of those who registered with the VCF, 22,078 have submitted eligibility forms. According to Ms. Birnbaum, of those 22,078, 13,437 have been determined eligible for compensation, while 1,830 claims cannot be decided because they are missing either signed permission to obtain claimants’ records, adequate medical documentation, or sufficient proof that claimants were at the site.
  • Of the 13,437 claimants who were determined eligible, 11,493 have submitted compensation forms, for which 9,131 compensation decisions have been made.
  • As of the December 31, 2015, the Victim Compensation Fund (VCF) has made determinations for compensation of $1,814,688,973.
  • Of the 9,131 claims that have had determinations made, 7,730 have been for responders, 1,090 have been non responders and 108 have been injured residents.

To see the Message from Special Master Sheila Birnbaum on the new annual report you can go here.
To download a pdf of the report you can go here.
http://www.vcf.gov/pdf/VCFStatusReportFeb2016.pdf

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