CDC unveils new September 11 site health effort

By Will Dunham

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. health officials unveiled plans on Thursday to help people who lived or worked near New York's World Trade Center who may have been harmed by exposure to dust and debris from the collapse in the 2001 attacks.

Nearly seven years after the September 11 attacks, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it will award up to $30 million in grants over three years to provide health screening, diagnostic services and treatment for residents near Ground Zero, as well as students, office workers and others who were not emergency responders.

Some lawmakers called the CDC's move long overdue.

"As we approach the seventh anniversary of 9/11, I am relieved that the Bush administration has given up their stall tactics and finally begun to release this funding," said Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a Democrat whose district includes Ground Zero.

Congress provided money for the initiative last December.

The grants are aimed at helping people other than police, firefighters and other emergency responders to the attacks who were addressed in previous programs, the CDC said.

Dr. Christine Branche, acting director of the CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, did not specify what medical conditions the CDC had in mind and did not offer a specific number of people who might get help.

Grant money also can be used to help cover gaps when a person's health insurance does not cover costs associated with care or treatment, the CDC said.

Doctors have identified a number of conditions that people nearby Ground Zero might face, including lung and respiratory diseases, asthma and others.

"There is no excuse for not addressing the very real needs of residents, students, and office workers experiencing adverse health impacts following the 9/11 attacks. Studies have clearly documented the illnesses experienced by community members in the aftermath of 9/11," said Sen. Hillary Clinton, a New York Democrat.

"We have, to date, invested at least $925 million in the programs to support the responders and now the non-responders to the 9/11 situation," CDC director Julie Gerberding told a telephone briefing with reporters. She did not take questions.

Branche said the CDC expects to award the grants around the end of September. "We encourage health and medical care facilities to apply," Branche said.

(Editing by Maggie Fox and Vicki Allen)