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Senate Democrats Look To Pass Bill Benefiting 9/11 Rescue Workers

Neon Tommy |
December 19, 2010 | 3:50 p.m. PST

Senate Democrats said on Sunday that they are optimistic that the health care bill benefiting 9/11 first responders would pass. 

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) said Democrats have made changes to the measure to gain Republican support. Senate Republicans blocked the bill earlier this month, arguing that provisions passed by the House to fund the program--which would have closed tax loopholes for foreign corporations--would violate international tax treaties.

Among the changes Democrats made to the bill was reducing its cost from $7.4 billion to $6.2 billion. Schumer said the amount was changed because of a recent $712.5 million legal settlement made with 9/11 rescue and recovery workers.

The new version of the bill will likely be introduced after the Senate votes on the Start nuclear arms treaty. Democrats hope to pass it before the end of the year.

"Barring a setback, we believe we're on the path to victory by the end of this week," he said, adding that, "We don't know exactly when that will occur - that's often up to our Republican colleagues - but we're next"

Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-New York) called the announcement a "Christmas miracle" for the bill and said, “America will be watching very closely to how this Senate votes on something that goes to the fundamental issue of who we are as Americans and whether we stand by our heroes."

The bill would provide treatment for 9/11 rescue workers and residents living near Ground Zero.

“The heroes who rushed to the towers on 9/11 are heroes who deserve to be taken care of, just like our veterans,” Schumer said. “That’s what America promised in the days after 9/11. We are holding up that candle so that that promise is met and we will not quit until it is.”



 

Buzz

Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

Watch USC Annenberg Media's live State of the Union recap and analysis here.

 
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