Publication of Final Rule for World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program Expanded Eligibility for Pentagon and Shanksville Responders

Today, the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program announced the publication of a final rule for expanded eligibility for Pentagon and Shanksville responders, effective May 27, 2025. This formality and final step in the rulemaking process follows the publication of a related interim final rule effective September 11, 2024, which expanded Program enrollment to include additional responders who served on 9/11 and in the weeks after at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

There are no further changes on eligibility for members with the publication of this final rule. The interim final rule published in September 2024 allowed for new enrollments for this expanded population of Pentagon/Shanksville responders to be effective immediately. Since the publication of the interim final rule, 72 new Pentagon/Shanksville responders have enrolled in the WTC Health Program. It is estimated that up to 9,500 individuals may have responded in some capacity and meet either the original or expanded eligibility criteria for the Pentagon and Shanksville sites.

Previously, the Zadroga Act that established the Program limited Pentagon and Shanksville eligibility to law enforcement, recovery or cleanup contractors, and volunteers. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2024 expanded eligibility for certain active duty, retired, or reserve members of the military, and civilian employees and contractors of the Department of Defense (DOD), as well as other Federal agencies, who responded to the Pentagon or Shanksville sites.

The Program encourages those who responded to the Pentagon and Shanksville to visit How to Apply to learn more about eligibility and enrollment.