RFK Jr.’s HHS cuts include a slap in the face to 9/11 heroes
Recent dismissals leave in doubt the future of a program that administers health care support for those who developed 9/11-related medical issues.

Given the sheer volume of indiscriminate firings and funding cuts under the Trump administration, it’s understandable that one such outrage would slip by us with little media attention. Yet, if the number of messages I’ve received from members of the first responder community are any indication, one particularly callous cut last week did not escape the attention of police officers, firefighters and federal agents who worked the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attack sites in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania.

The Trump administration recently fired the head of the World Trade Center Health Program, and dismissed two-thirds of the entire staff at the program’s parent agency, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). The dismissals leave in doubt the future of the initiative that administers health care support for those who developed 9/11-related cancers, respiratory ailments and other medical issues.