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“Getting the piece of legislation passed is not as hard as guarding it,” said John Feal, who was injured at the 9/11 ground zero site while working as a demolition supervisor.

“You will watch the legislation mature, as more and more people who need the assistance come forward,” Feal said.

That, Feal said, is what happened with the various government programs created after the 9/11 attacks to provide monetary compensation and healthcare to injured first responders, including some later diagnosed with cancer.

Feal added that lawmakers should be ready to bolster funding to adequately staff the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program if it adds to the conditions currently covered, noting that the 9/11 programs have swelled as more first responders have presented service-related conditions.

“There were 75,000 people in the program in 2015. There’s now close to 140,000,” Feal said.