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Deadline To Register For 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Fast Approaching

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Elected officials are urging anyone who was in lower Manhattan on or after Sept. 11, 2001 to register for the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund before next month's deadline.

As WCBS 880's Peter Haskell reported, there are 27,000 people who've registered to be compensated due to 9/11-related illnesses.

Applicants must register by Oct. 3 to be eligible for funds to cover existing illnesses or illnesses that may appear by 2016.

Anyone who was exposed to the toxins from the 9/11 attacks is urged to register, whether they are experiencing any symptoms or not.

Deadline To Register For 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund Fast Approaching

"And it's available to first responders, survivors and their family members," Rep. Carolyn Maloney said.

Residents who lived downtown during the terror attacks are also eligible to register, she said.

Rep. Maloney was joined by Rep. Jerrold Nadler and others in reminding people to register before the deadline.

LINK9/11 Victim Compensation Fund

The $2.8 billion Victim Compensation Fund will be divided among those who register and are eligible for benefits.

But Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund Special Master Shelia Birnbaum said there is no schedule dictating how much a particular illness is worth.

"Every individual is treated individually although it depends on their lost income and their economic loss," Birnbaum said. "It's all going to depend at the end of how many people apply."

Those enrolled in any of the World Trade Center medical programs must also register for the Victim Compensation Fund to be eligible, Haskell reported.

Wednesday marks the 12th anniversary of the deadliest terror attack on U.S. soil.

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