Denise Harrison was working at Bellevue Hospital in New York City on September 11, 2001. The hospital had cleared the emergency room, anticipating a massive influx of patients after the terrorist attack at the World Trade Center, she says. That was saddening.” Thousands died on September 11, when fires burned and buildings fell.
But for hundreds of thousands more who responded to the disasters, worked in the recovery or cleanup, or lived near ground zero, that day and its toxic aftermath continue to reverberate. In New York City, when the twin towers collapsed, spewing dust and debris and polluting the air, the massive destruction and toxic exposures fueled respiratory diseases, cancers and mental health disorders. It’s now 25 years later, and new health challenges are arising.
Responders to the disasters are aging, developing health issues that can complicate their Sept. 11–related conditions. Retirement can deepen mental health struggles. Anniversaries can be triggering.
The news reports and images dominating the airwaves and social media for this latest milestone “will definitely reactivate the emotions, the memories. And it doesn’t all go away on September 12,” says Jodi Streich, the mental health director at the World Trade Center Health Program at Rutgers University in Piscataway, N.J. The program cares for people who worked in rescue, response, recovery and cleanup at the disaster sites in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. and the plane crash site near Shanksville, Pa.
It also covers people in New York City who lived, worked or attended school near the World Trade Center. As of summer 2026, more than 154,000 people are enrolled in the program, which is funded through 2090. The WTC Health Program is “like a safety net” for her patients, Harrison says, where medical providers know their stories and their struggles.
People who qualify have an initial evaluation and yearly check-ups along with necessary specialized care at no cost to them. The program officially began in 2011, after Congress dedicated long-term funding to Sept. 11 health care. The dust from the collapse of buildings at ground zero — the 110-story twin towers and a neighboring 47-story office building — clung to the air for nearly two weeks until it finally rained.
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