Firm Partners speak at Conference for 9-11 Workers.

On January 28th 2006, an organization entitled “Unsung Heroes Helping Heroes” consisting of  rescue, clean-up and recovery workers from the Ground Zero and other sites related to the 9-11 disaster convened a conference to deal with the medical, political, economic and legal issues effecting over 50,000 workers who helped. Many of these workers have come down with serious lung and other diseases and their needs are not being met. The all-day conference held at the Brentwood Campus of Suffolk Community College, was sponsored by Suffolk County Legislative Presiding Officer Bill Lindsay, and co-sponsored by The Long Island Occupational and Environmental Health Center, The World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Project, and Fusco Brandenstein & Rada, P.C. Additional donations of goods and services came from New Media Printing, Inc. of Bethpage and The Outback Steakhouse which helped provide lunches.

Victor Fusco moderated a panel discussion:  Milan Rada spoke about the ramifications of the 9-11 presumption bill for governmental workers; Richard Brandenstein explained the difficulties encountered in the Workers' Compensation; Mr. Fusco spoke about Social Security Disability Insurance; Dick O’Kane, President of the Iron Workers’ Union discussed the position of the Trade Unions and mentioned ways in which they could be of help; Marvin Bethea, Vice-President of Unsung Heroes Helping Heroes, Inc. and a disabled former EMS worker talked of his struggles in securing benefits and rallied the assemblage to engage in concerted political advocacy.

Some of  the other speakers at the conference included, Jonathan Sferazo and John Feal, both disabled Ground Zero clean up workers who helped form Unsung Heroes Helping Heroes, Inc.; Ben Luft MD and Linda Cocchiarella, MD of the Long Island Occupational and Environmental Health Center; Steven Levin MD of the Mount Sinai Medical Center and World Trade Center Monitoring Project; Dr. David Prezance of the NYC Fire Department; Suffolk County Legislator Bill Lindsay, New York State Assemblyman Marc Alessi; New York State Senator John Flanagan; US Congressman Tim Bishop and US Congressman Steve Israel who was the keynote speaker. Medodie Guerrera of Long Island Occupational and Environmental Health Center moderated the conference.