Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Judge Approves $712 Million 9/11 Responder Deal
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 24, 2010
Modified Jun 24, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 24, 2010
Modified Jun 24, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
A federal judge approved the latest offer from the city to settle 9/11 first responders' health claims. Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the $712 million settlement "is fair... This has been a long and difficult process and I'm very happy it's resolved," but added that it wasn't "perfect... I wish there was enough money so that anybody that had any kind of injury got compensated just because he was a hero on 9/11."
However, for the deal to go through, 95% of the approximate 10,000 plaintiffs must agree to it. According to the NY Law Journal, some aren't happy: "Retired NYPD Detective Candace Baker, who claims the 400 hours of overtime she put at Ground Zero caused her breast cancer, and retired firefighter Kenneth Specht, who claims his cancer was caused by exposure to toxic dust, both criticized the settlement for not providing enough money for solid tumor cancers." Hellerstein said, "This is a settlement system and not a compensation system, so I have to pay attention, and the lawyers have to pay attention, to what is provable." Still, Specht, who expects $10,000, said, "To be told now that what I did nine years ago didn't contribute to my cancer is a tough situation to swallow."
The NY Times explains, "A claims administrator will review medical records and work history for each case and decide the amounts to be paid to each plaintiff or estate according to four tiers of disease or injury categories and severity. Lawyers for the WTC Captive Insurance Company, the city’s insurer that will pay the settlement out of a federally financed fund, told the court that half the plaintiffs fell into the fourth tier, reserved for the worst injuries and illnesses, and would get 94 percent of the payout."
Tagged
9/11
dust
ground zero
settlement
toxic dust
world trade center
wtc
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Inside Luigi Mangione's legal strategy before his federal guilty plea
Newly unsealed transcripts and court filings reveal how his lawyers weighed a mental health defense — and the risk it could have posed to his federal case.
By
Samantha Max
Published Oct 20, 2026 at 12:37 p.m. ET
NYC proposes crackdown down on AI customer service chatbots
Customers would have to be provided the option of speaking with a human.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
NYC proposes crackdown down on AI customer service chatbots
Customers would have to be provided the option of speaking with a human.
By
Arya Sundaram
Early Addition: There's a new hot duck, this time in Queens
By
James Ramsay
NYPD hate crime unit investigates smashed windows, ‘Pal Action’ graffiti at UES Capital One
By
Ryan Kost
A reliably Republican part of NJ, until ICE came to town
By
Mike Hayes
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .