White House must restore cuts to World Trade Center health program

Less than two months after the Trump administration first cut World Trade Center Health Program staffing, the survivors of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks again are begging for the basic care they require and deserve.

Those first cuts were reversed just days later. But this time, the White House went further, firing John Howard, the physician who administered the WTC Health Program and headed the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, a division of Health and Human Services that houses the health program. On top of that, the Trump administration indiscriminately slashed more than 800 jobs at NIOSH — including WTC Health Program staff — even after Trump officials promised they’d be safe.

Beyond the staff specifically assigned to the program, other NIOSH personnel handled much of the program’s administration — and they were fired, too. Without appropriate staff, especially physicians, key programs like the Firefighter Cancer Registry were halted, and key steps in any survivor’s treatment like the certification of claims and enrollment of new members were interrupted.

That means first responders can’t get necessary sign-offs on immediate treatments they require, especially specialized, lifesaving treatments like chemotherapy or a lung transplant. It means those who are newly sick, or fear they will become sick, can’t get registered or receive the monitoring exams or diagnostics they seek. And it means all-important research into the connection between 9/11 and other diseases, including cognitive declines, also stopped.

Over the weekend, there was a sliver of good news amid the chaos, as Howard was reportedly reinstated. Howard’s return came only after Republican members of Congress, including Rep. Andrew Garbarino, pushed back against his firing. Garbarino met with White House officials last week specifically to discuss the WTC Health Program, a meeting that likely led to Howard’s reinstatement.

But the effort can’t stop there. The White House must immediately rehire the personnel the World Trade Center Health Program needs to fully comply with the law and take care of all its participants. Administration officials also should meet with advocates and congressional representatives to learn about the program and avoid future pitfalls. Perhaps the officials didn’t realize their cuts would impact the health program. They should have. A more thoughtful, responsible look at whom they’re cutting and why — and what the unintended consequences are — is necessary. Our first responders and other 9/11 survivors who spent months sifting through debris and breathing toxic air have fought for this program for decades, and still battle for its funding and stability. They need to know there will be someone who can approve their treatments and answer the phone when they call.

A statement from Garbarino, along with fellow Republican Reps. Nick LaLota, Mike Lawler and Nicole Malliotakis, called Howard’s firing “an unfortunate mistake.”

For the sake of our first responders, we can’t afford any more “mistakes.”