Congress must fight cuts to WTC health program

In the 23-plus years since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, police officers, firefighters and other first responders and survivors have faced challenge after challenge. Many are dying, or battling serious illness, after breathing in the toxic dust. Many have spent years begging their elected officials to fund their health care, a fight that dismayingly still goes on.

Now, they face a new challenge that could affect their health, treatment, and future diagnoses.

The Trump administration's broad employee cuts have slashed World Trade Center Health Program staffing by 20%. Sixteen people were fired and several others took the administration's buyout offer. Among those dismissed were a social worker, a public health analyst, an enrollment specialist, and research and benefits officials — all individuals on whom our sick and dying first responders depend.

Without adequate staffing, first responders could face delays in enrolling in the program, getting certified for treatment, and expanding their coverage to include additional conditions as they arise. These patients will find it harder to get help when facing problems with prescriptions or treatment. And the program will have greater difficulty supervising its health care contractors, leaving it open to fraud and abuse.

On top of that, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has terminated a critical FDNY research grant on 9/11 illnesses that affect firefighters, calling it "non-essential." That's an insult to all of us, especially our first responders and anyone whose health was affected by the 9/11 attacks.

These inexcusable cuts underscore just how little thought and nuance has gone into many of the moves made by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency. Importantly, they come just two months after President Donald Trump and Musk stopped a congressional spending bill that would have finally provided the health program with the long-term funding it needed. We're still waiting for that, too.

More than 137,000 first responders and survivors, residing in all but one of the nation's congressional districts, are enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Program. More than 24,000 are Long Islanders. About 11,000 of them live in either Congressional District 1 or 2, represented by Republican Reps. Nick LaLota and Andrew Garbarino, respectively. Garbarino has long been a loud voice in support of the health program's funding. This week, he led a group of New York and New Jersey Republican representatives, including LaLota, in writing a letter to Trump expressing what they called "grave concerns" regarding the program staff and research cuts. They rightly suggest "fencing off" the program from "any further staff and funding reductions."

It's a promising step, one of the first times Republicans have pushed back against Trump's actions. But Garbarino, LaLota and their colleagues can't stop there. They must continue the battle until staff and funding are restored — and until it's clear no further cuts will be made. Our heroes deserve nothing less.