Health program to monitor Sept. 11 workers exposed to toxins halted over funding
DEVLIN BARRETT Associated Press Writer
(AP) - WASHINGTON-The government has halted an attempt to organize health monitoring for World Trace Center site workers spread across the United States, saying the program could cost far more money than Congress has provided.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services filed paperwork Thursday canceling an effort to hire a company that would create a "processing center" for medical screening of those who worked amid the toxic rubble of the towers following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The government had been seeking bids from private contractors to handle the work, but, according to the new filing, the process "is being cancelled due to a number of factors which prevent (the Centers for Disease Control) from awarding an executable contract at this time."
The contract had aimed to organize and improve various Sept. 11 health programs, and provide pharmacy benefits. Health officials feared the work could cost more money than they had to spend, as much as $165 million (€113.7 million) compared to the $52 million (€35.8 million) Congress provided.
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