The Stony Brook University World Trade Center Health Program is expanding its clinical Center of Excellence to Winthrop-University Hospital which enables care and treatment for thousands more who were exposed to toxic chemicals and who continue to suffer from upper and lower respiratory ailments, mental health symptoms, and other conditions related to the environment at Ground Zero.

With an annual budget of more than $8 million, Stony Brook’s Islandia-based WTC Health Program is a clinical and research program that has been in operation since immediately after 9/11. The program is supported primarily by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), an arm of the Centers for Disease Control. The Stony Brook program to date follows more than 6,000 9/11 responders, including police officers, firefighters, paramedics, and construction workers with an 80 percent retention rate. The Center of Excellence in Islandia cares for mo