US deems 9/11 responders terrorists?

Rescue workers carry fatally injured New York City Fire Department Chaplain, Father Mychal Judge, from one of the World Trade Center towers in New York City, early September 11, 2001.

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/176141.html

Thousands of Americans, who risked their lives to save lives during the 9/11 terror attacks on US soil, will soon be screened by the FBI terrorism watch list.

A host of 9/11 first responders, who saved countless lives, will now have their personal data put through a government terror database and will be considered possible terrorists under a provision in James Zadroga 9/11 Health & Compensation Act -- a bill named after an NYPD detective who died of 9/11 -- related illnesses, The Huffington Post reported on Thursday.

They will subsequently be denied treatment for breathing disorders and mental health problems developed in the aftermath of the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The provision was added to the 9/11 first responders health care law last May, when Republican Rep. Cliff Stearns of Florida tabled an amendment during the intense debate over the bill in the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

A letter written by Dr. John Howard, director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, has informed medical providers across the United States that participants from the 9/11 health program will soon have all their information forward to the FBI.

“This is absurd,” said Glen Kline, a former NYPD emergency services officer. “It's silly. It's stupid. It's asinine.”

John Feal, a former construction worker who lost half a foot at Ground Zero and runs the advocacy group Fealgood Foundation, also said, “It's comical at best, and I think it's an insult to everyone who worked on The Pile and is sick and suffering from 9/11.”