Vincent Pitta Meets with President-Elect Donald Trump
Pitta & Baione LLP managing partner Vincent F. Pitta has kicked off 2017 by having several meetings with President-Elect Donald Trump to discuss infrastructure, construction initiatives, jobs, healthcare and environmental issues, and union members’ rights. Politico compared Mr. Pitta’s meeting with President-Elect Trump to that of Mitt Romney and Al Gore. Mr. Pitta has negotiated labor contracts on behalf of union clients with companies owned by President-Elect Trump since 1979 – most recently the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas and a neutrality card check agreement with the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C.
Along with Mr. Pitta at the meetings with President-Elect Trump were Peter Ward, President of the New York Hotel Trades Council, James T. Callahan, General President of the International Union of Operating Engineers, and most recently, James P. Hoffa, General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Mr. Pitta is deeply concerned with health issues faced by Americans — first responders and others — who were exposed to 9/11 toxins, or WTC dust. Recent studies and reports show that the casualties from the 9/11 terror attacks continue to grow, as the long-term effects caused by exposure to airborne toxins at the attack sites begin to manifest and cause serious illness such as cancer, lung disease and other aero-digestive disorders.
It has also been reported that about 1,100 deaths are attributable to exposure to airborne toxins resulting from the 9/11 attacks, and that the cancer rate for persons exposed to these toxins has tripled in the past two and half years. Scientists have predicted that health effects arising from exposure to airborne toxins will cause more deaths than the terrorist attacks themselves.
While the above mentioned statistics are devastating, perhaps more shocking is that the numbers are based on less than 20% of the exposed population: the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) estimates that over 500,000 people were exposed to toxins on and after 9/11, yet less than 80,000 have enrolled in the World Trade Center Health Program.
In response to the ongoing health concerns of 9/11 toxins exposure, Congress passed The James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, and its 2015 reauthorization. The Act and reauthorization provided for over $12 billion in benefits, the World Trade Center Health Program, and the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund.
Pitta & Baione LLP assists individuals applying to the World Trade Center Health Program and represents their corresponding claims for compensation. Anyone who was exposed to 9/11 toxins, or WTC dust, on, or in the months following 9/11, may be eligible for free healthcare and compensation.
The following is the list of conditions currently eligible for free healthcare and compensation. The list is subject to change as scientific studies reveal new conditions caused by exposure to 9/11 toxins. For example, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder) was recently added to the list.
- Cancer
- Blood and Lymphoid Tissue (including, but not limited to, lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma)
- Diffuse non-Hodgkin lymphoma
- Follicular (nodular) non-Hodgkin lymphoma
- Hodgkin’s disease
- Leukemia of unspecified cell type
- Lymphoid leukemia
- Malignant immunoproliferative diseases
- Monocytic leukemia
- Multiple myeloma and malignant plasma cell neoplasms
- Myeloid leukemia
- Other and unspecified lymphoid, hematopoietic, and related tissue
- Other and unspecified types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma
- Other leukemias of specified cell type
- Peripheral and cutaneous T-cell lymphoma
- Digestive System
- Colon
- Esophagus
- Liver and intrahepatic bile ducts
- Other and ill-defined digestive organs
- Rectosignoid junction
- Rectum
- Retroperitoneum and peritoneum
- Stomach
- Eye and Orbit
- Female Breast
- Ovary
- Head and Neck
- Accessory sinuses
- Base of tongue
- Floor of mouth
- Gum
- Hypopharynx
- Larynx
- Lip
- Nasal cavity
- Nasopharynx
- Other and ill-defined conditions in the lip, oral cavity, and pharynx
- Other and unspecified major salivary glands
- Other and unspecified part of the mouth
- Other and unspecified parts of the tongue
- Oropharynx
- Palate
- Parotid gland
- Piriform sinus
- Tonsil
- Respiratory System
- Bronchus and lung
- Heart, mediastinum, and pleura
- Other and ill-defined sites in the respiratory system and intrathoracic organs
- Trachea
- Skin (Melanoma and non-Melanoma)
- Malignant melanoma of skin
- Other malignant neoplasms of skin
- Scrotum
- Soft Tissue
- Thyroid
- Urinary System
- Bladder
- Kidney
- Other and unspecified urinary organs
- Prostate
- Renal pelvis
- Ureter
- Mesothelioma
- Blood and Lymphoid Tissue (including, but not limited to, lymphoma, leukemia, and myeloma)
- Aerodigestive Disorders (Airways and Digestive Disorders)
- Asthma
- Chronic cough syndrome
- Chronic laryngitis
- Chronic nasopharyngitis
- Chronic respiratory disorder—fumes/vapors
- Chronic rhinosinusitis
- Gastroesophageal reflux disorder (“GERD”) (persistent heartburn)
- Interstitial lung diseases (e.g., sarcoidosis)
- Reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS)
- Sleep apnea exacerbated by or related to another condition described in the list of aerodigestive disorders
- Upper airway hyperreactivity
- WTC-exacerbated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- New-onset COPD
- Mental Health Conditions (ineligible for compensation)
- Acute stress disorder
- Adjustment disorder
- Anxiety disorder (not otherwise specified)
- Depression (not otherwise specified)
- Dysthymic disorder (persistent depressive disorder)
- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Major depressive disorder
- Panic disorder
- Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Substance abuse
- Musculoskeletal Disorders (Responders only)
- Responders who received treatment for a WTC-related musculoskeletal disorder, such as carpal tunnel syndrome or lower back pain, on or before September 11, 2003 are eligible for coverage.
- Acute Traumatic Injury
- Responders and survivors who received treatment for a WTC-related acute traumatic injury on or before September 11, 2003 are eligible for coverage. Examples include:
- Eye injury
- Burn
- Head trauma
- Fracture
- Tendon tear
- Complex sprain
- Responders and survivors who received treatment for a WTC-related acute traumatic injury on or before September 11, 2003 are eligible for coverage. Examples include:
- Rare Cancers
- Malignant neoplasms of the adrenal gland and other endocrine glands and related structures
- Anus and anal canal
- Bone and articular cartilage
- Breast among men
- Gallbladder and other parts of biliary tract
- Meninges, brain, spinal cord, cranial nerves, and other parts of central nervous system
- Pancreas
- Penis and testis
- Placenta
- Small intestine
- Thymus
- Vulva, vagina, and cervix uteri (invasive only)
- Malignant neuroendocrine neoplasm, including carcinoid tumors
- Myeloid neoplasms, including myelodysplastic syndromes, myeloproliferative neoplasms, myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasms, and myeloid malignancies associated with eosinophilia and abnormalities of growth factor receptors derived from platelets or fibroblasts
- Other cancers that meet the threshold incidence rate of less than 15 cases per 100,000 persons per year based on age-adjusted 2005-2009 average annual data.
For more information on the WTC Health Program List of Covered Conditions and 9/11 Victim Compensation, please contact Pitta & Baione LLP at 844-982-2667 or [email protected]