Gillibrand, Schumer Announce Final Senate Passage Of Major Legislation Providing Health Care To Heroic 9/11 First Responders--Bill Should Reach President's Desk Later Today

Statement

Bill's Passage Marks End of Almost Decade-Long Effort To Ensure Those Who Rushed Toward the Fallen Towers Received The Care They Deserve

U.S. Senators Kirsten E. Gillibrand (D-NY) and Charles E. Schumer (D-NY) announced Wednesday that the Senate has unanimously passed major legislation to finally provide health care for 9/11first responders who fell ill in the years after performing rescue work at Ground Zero. The breakthrough came after marathon negotiations between the New York senators and Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY) and Tom Coburn (R-OK) produced a compromise measure that reduced the bill's cost without reducing benefits for rescue workers.

In a joint statement, Gillibrand and Schumer said: "The Christmas Miracle we've been looking for has arrived. Over the last 24 hours, our Republican colleagues have negotiated in good faith to forge a workable final package that will protect the health of the men and women who selflessly answered our nation's call in her hour of greatest need. We are pleased to announce that we crafted an agreement that will allow this legislation to pass the Senate, and the House, this afternoon. We thank our Republican friends for coming together to fulfill America's moral obligation to the heroes of 9/11.

The senators added: "This has been a long process, but we are now on the cusp of the victory these heroes deserve. We would not be here without the strong leadership of Majority Leader Reid, Congresswoman Maloney, Congressman Nadler, Congressman King, Congressman Weiner, Congressman Crowley, Congressman McMahon, the entire New York Congressional delegation, and most of all, the many brave first responders and community survivors."

The critical legislation was first introduced in 2009 and it passed the House in September. The measure failed on a party-line vote when it was first taken up by the Senate earlier this month. Despite these obstacles, Schumer and Gillibrand continued to fight for another vote before the end of the session, and Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) has said he would bring the measure back up.

Earlier this week, the New York senators reduced the cost of the bill by $1.2 billion and changed the way it was paid for. The move gave the senators the 60 votes needed to advance the measure. But yesterday, Coburn announced that unless certain changes were made, he would hold up the measure long enough to potentially defeat it.

Gillibrand and Schumer conducted negotiations with both Coburn and Enzi until after midnight last night.

In the end, the senators agreed to a bill that reduced costs even further. The final price tag, $4.3 billion, includes $1.8 billion to provide health care for first-responders and $2.5 billion to re-open the Victims Compensation Fund (VCF). The cost reductions came because the authorization of the health program shrank from 8 years to 5. The revised measure also calls for studies into potential cost-saving options for the programs. It also tightens the cap on fees paid to attorneys that represent VCF claimants.

In a major win for the bill's advocates, the senators successfully preserved language in the bill that ensures physician payment rates are fair and continue to allow patient access. The reimbursement rates for the doctors and medical professionals treating the victims in the bill is the same that the government currently uses for other government officials, such as postal workers and Peace Corps volunteers.

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