WASHINGTON — Even though he no longer has the “Daily Show” as a platform, Jon Stewart is pushing ahead with a cause he trumpeted on the program: medical care for Sept. 11 responders.
Stewart and others took their message to the U.S. Capitol lawn Wednesday, demanding a permanent extension of the health benefit program, which was first passed in 2010 but is set to soon expire.
“I’m here today basically to apologize,” Stewart said, speaking directly to the dozens of current and former New York City firefighters surrounding him. “I’m embarrassed that you, after serving so selflessly, with such heroism, have to come down here and convince people to do what’s right.”
Many emergency workers and others say they have suffered long-term health consequences from exposure to debris unleashed in the Sept. 11 attacks.
Stewart was joined by U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who says research has linked the reported cases of cancer to toxins released in the attacks.
“We know exactly who’s sick, why they’re sick,” she says.
Gillibrand is part of a bipartisan group of New York lawmakers that has expressed support for an extension of the bill.
Stewart was even more critical of Congress as he met individually with firefighters and supporters before heading to the podium.
“These guys are the last responders,” Stewart said of the lawmakers. “You guys are the first. These guys are the last. It’s embarrassing.”
Stewart is widely credited with bringing attention to the original measure in 2010, which covers workers from World Trade Center site, the Pentagon and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Those who rallied around Stewart say they’ve been suffering from a host of ailments. Retired New York fire department Lt. Kevin O’Kane, who was part of the recovery effort, says he deals with what he and others call “permanent World Trade Center cough.” But he says he is more concerned with the major health issues facing some of his colleagues. He believes the most severe illnesses have surfaced in the past couple of years.
New York firefighter and marine engineer Robert Alexander, who responded to the Twin Towers as a police officer and was diagnosed with brain cancer last year, came to tell Congress to “get its rear in gear.” He says his medical costs have been covered so far but worries about what the bills might look like if he becomes responsible for them. Even those in good health say they remain fearful of developing a serious illness like cancer.
The extension of the medical care measure has been stalled because of questions about its price tag, which could be significantly larger than the 2010 bill, and because of concerns about the potential for fraud and waste.
