Schumer Wants Benefits for Widow of 9/11 Worker
Monday, June 25, 2018 | 0
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer has called on the New York Workers’ Compensation Board to grant death benefits to the widow of a state trooper who developed pancreatic cancer after working at the site of the September 2001 terrorist attack.
In a statement on Friday, Schumer asked WCB to quickly review and approve benefits for Audra Lakeman of Lockport, New York. Lakeman’s husband, New York State Trooper Lawrence Lakeman, was among as many as 4,000 members of the state police who were sent to Manhattan in the wake of the attack on the World Trade Center.
Lawrence Lakeman worked at Ground Zero from September until December 2001. He fell ill with pancreatic cancer in 2006 and died from the disease less than two years later.
WCB denied Audra Lakeman’s initial claim on the grounds that she did not file within two years of Lakeman’s 2007 death.
However, pancreatic cancer was not recognized by the Department of Health and Human Services as an eligible 9/11-connected disease until February 2014, Schumer said. Audra Lakeman filed her claim in August of 2015, well within two years of her knowledge of her husband’s eligibility.
“Simply put, Lawrence Lakeman lost his life as a result of his service to his state and his country, and his widow and children deserve fair compensation and peace,” Schumer said.
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