Governor Kathy Hochul today called on the Trump administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the federal Department of Homeland Security to undo efforts to gut essential services provided through the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program by reassigning personnel to federal agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, for which funding has reached record levels. This ongoing reduction in the WTC Health Program's workforce and operational capacity directly affects the health, safety, and long-term welfare of the first responders and others who answered the call during and after the September 11 attacks, including members of the New York State Police, the New York Police Department, the New York Fire Department and the Port Authority Police Department.

"The World Trade Center Health Program is a lifeline for the survivors and first responders who answered the call almost 25 years ago and afterward without hesitation - and they deserve the same support from their government today," Governor Hochul said. "Reducing staff for an essential health program that has already faced drastic cuts in order to support an out-of-control enforcement agency with a history of failing to protect Americans is reprehensible. Our first responders and their families deserve better."

The WTC Health Program was created to ensure that first responders receive timely medical monitoring, rapid certification of 9/11-related illnesses, specialized treatment, and family support and survivor benefits. In the last year, the WTC Health Program has seen a more than 25 percent reduction of staff, leaving fewer than 85 employees to oversee the roughly 140,000 survivors enrolled in the program.

Diverting personnel away from this critical program inevitably slows medical certifications, delays treatment approvals, and increases administrative backlogs for individuals who often require urgent care. Many 9/11-related cancers progress rapidly, and any delay in certification or treatment approval can mean the difference between early intervention and advanced disease. To date, more first responders have died from 9/11-related illnesses than the 2,974 killed on September 11, 2001.

Meanwhile, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has reached record-level funding as part of the "Big Ugly Bill," which tripled the agency's budget to an estimated $85 billion. As of January 2026, ICE has also doubled the number of officers and agents within the agency from 10,000 to 22,000.

New York State Police Superintendent Steven G. James said, "The New York State Police are deeply concerned by any action that reduces the capacity of the World Trade Center Health Program. We have lost 41 members to 9/11-related illnesses, and many more continue to face serious health conditions tied to their service. This program is a lifeline for first responders and their families. Maintaining its full strength is essential to ensuring timely care and honoring our commitment to those who served."

New York State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said, "The World Trade Center Health Program is a lifeline for the men and women who became sick after responding to the September 11 attacks. These responders are facing serious illnesses due to their service at Ground Zero and they deserve timely care, support and peace of mind. Any disruption to this program risks delaying the treatment they need and deserve."

Executive Director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Kathryn Garcia said, "This is personal for the Port Authority. We lost 84 colleagues on September 11, including 37 members of our Police Department, and too many more have been taken from us in the years since. The World Trade Center Health Program is how we care for those who are still paying the price for that day. Ensuring it is fully funded and fully staffed is the least we can do to honor their service and stand by them and their families."

Fire Department of New York Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said, "Restoring full staffing to the 9/11 Health Program is a moral obligation. The brave men and women who didn't hesitate on September 11 and in days that followed deserve consistent, comprehensive medical care. Making sure this program is fully staffed keeps our promise to never forget, by providing the support our first responders have earned."

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin said, "It's nearly 25 years after 9/11 and we are still asking our first responders and survivors to fight for the care they were promised. Stripping resources from the World Trade Center Health Program, a lifeline for thousands of New Yorkers, is unconscionable. I worked and lived in Lower Manhattan on September 11, and my own mother died from a 9/11-related cancer. We owe these heroes the full support of their government. The federal administration must immediately restore these staff positions and stop undermining a program that saves lives."

Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services Acting Commissioner Terry O'Leary said, "Thousands of people put their lives on the line during the attacks on September 11th and during the days immediately after. The World Trade Center Health Program is a crucial resource for those individuals and is part of the debt this Nation owes them for their service. It is of the utmost importance that this program remains fully staffed and accessible, and I thank Governor Hochul for her support of our first responders."

New York State Fire Administrator James Cable said, "Those who responded to the attacks of September 11, 2001 did so without hesitation. Many made the ultimate sacrifice and gave their lives to save others. Far too many have made the ultimate sacrifice since, succumbing to 9/11 related illnesses, including members of the NYS Office of Fire Prevention and Control and NY-TF2, our Urban Search and Rescue team. The Federal Government has an obligation to stand by those who continue to battle illnesses related to their participation in the response and recovery efforts. 2026 marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of those attacks, our responders should not have to still be fighting for the support and care that they earned and deserve."

Firefighters Association of the State of New York President Eugene Perry said, "Full funding and staffing of the World Trade Center Health Program is important to all who responded to the attacks on 9/11 and the recovery efforts that followed. Career and volunteer firefighters worked side-by-side at the World Trade Center site. With the long-term health effects continuing 25 years later, it is very important to FASNY that the WTC Health Program has everything it needs to care for those who answered the call."

New York City Uniformed Firefighters Association (UFA) President Andy Ansbro said, "We appreciate Governor Hochul's efforts to protect 9/11 first responders and survivors' benefits. While nearly 25 years have passed since 9/11, the effects of that terrible day are still being felt by our firefighters and others who worked in and around ground zero in the days and months following the attack. We have lost thousands of firefighters to illness from their work at ground zero and any cuts to staff or funding to help care for those men and women are an unconscionable breach of trust. We have an obligation to care for those first responders, and we stand with New York State in calling for a reverse on any Federal staffing or funding cuts to any 9/11-related program."

New York State Public Employees Federation President Wayne Spence said, "The Public Employees Federation strongly condemns the Trump Administration's decision to reassign staff at the World Trade Center Health Program to roles with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. As a union that lost 34 members during the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2011, we take this personally. Survivors and first responders - many of whom were family members of 9/11 victims - were promised access to free medical monitoring and treatment as they struggled with illnesses caused by their exposure at Ground Zero. They deserve a health care system that is fully staffed, funded, and focused on their needs-not one hollowed out and redirected for unrelated political priorities. How does this decision 'Make America Great Again'?"

New York State Police Investigators Association President Kurt Labuda said, "In the days and months following 9/11, members of the New York State Police, including Investigators and Sr. Investigators in the Bureau of Criminal Investigation, were involved in the rescue and recovery efforts at ground zero. Now, nearly 25 years later, our members continue to experience devastating health effects of that work. We are totally opposed to any cuts in the 9/11 related health benefits for these first responders, and we appreciate the efforts by Governor Hochul to ensure our members continue to get the care they deserve."

New York City Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry said, "The work of the WTC Health Program is more critical than ever. We are still losing dozens of active and retired police officers every year to 9/11-related illnesses, and thousands more are receiving vital treatment and monitoring. We can't afford to lose any more of the personnel who are caring for our 9/11 heroes."

New York State Workers' Compensation Board Chair Freida D. Foster said, "The Board stands with Governor Hochul in demanding this inexplicable action be reversed. As an agency that has long been urging those who participated in the rescue, recovery, and clean-up of the World Trade Center to register their service and preserve rights to future benefits, it's alarming to see federal staff cuts that can only do harm. These cuts will undermine efforts to serve New Yorkers who need medical care due to their 9/11-related service."

Contact the Governor's Press Office