9/11 settlement extended

9/11 settlement extended
by Lauren Urban

New Rochelle, NY - The legal battle that started in 2003 will drag on for an additional eight days.

The deadline for thousands of September 11th first responders to accept a $712 million settlement with New York City over supposed illnesses contracted from toxic exposure at ground zero has been extended from November 8 to the 16.

The settlement requires that 95 percent of the approximately 10,000 plaintiffs, including emergency workers, firefighters and police officers, sign on.

According to CNN, as of Saturday, November 6, 92 percent of plaintiffs agreed to participate, said plaintiff attorney Paul Napoli.

"I'm very optimistic there will be a deal, and it will be done," Napoli stated, according to CNN.

The request for the extension was made by lawyers for the plaintiffs in an appeal to the World Trade Center Captive Insurance Company, which will pay individual settlement amounts out of a federally financed fund, according to The New York Times.

The extension was approved by the judge overseeing the litigation, Alvin K. Hellerstein of Federal District Court. "The huge influx of plaintiffs opting into the settlement continues to tax the capacity to process" the plaintiffs' documents, he said, according to The New York Times.

The settlement caps attorney fees to 25 percent of the total. Plaintiff lawyers have already pocketed over $150 million for themselves, while defense lawyers for the city of New York have pocketed $200 million, according to John Stossel of FOX Business and FOX News.

According to the New York Daily News, the settlement determines the amount of payouts for workers based on the extent of their illness, how much time they spent at ground zero and their medical history.

Qualifying plaintiffs will be enrolled in a special MetLife insurance policy that will pay up to $100,000 for certain blood and respiratory cancers diagnosed during the coverage period, according to CNN. Anyone claiming severe respiratory issues contracted within seven months of exposure at ground zero or surrounding sites may receive $800,000 to $1.05 million. Claims of death linked to September 11th toxins could result in compensation of $1.5 million.

However, plaintiffs don't need to have a qualifying injury to receive a payout. Those who filed a legal claim in the fear that they will become sick in the future can receive $3,250.

Additionally, those who join in on the settlement are still eligible for the James Zadroga 9/11 Health Bill. This $7.4 billion bill aims to provide free medical coverage for responders who were exposed to toxins, according to CNN. In September, the House passed the bill in a 268-160 vote, but it has yet to pass the Senate.

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