Widow of Highland Mills 9/11 first responder denied survivor benefits 13 times
Cathy Hanson says ALS isn’t considered a 9/11 illness and that she’s been denied her late husband's survivor benefits from New York City 13 times.
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The widow of a 9/11 first responder from Orange County is speaking to News 12 about her husband’s service at ground zero and her ongoing fight with New York City for her late husband’s benefits.
“Mike always said he was gifted with 17 more years than the people murdered that day,” says Cathy Hanson.
Her husband, Mike Hanson, served with the NYPD’s Elite Emergency Service Unit for eight months at ground zero during rescue and recovery efforts.
The Highland Mills man retired in 2006 after a distinguished, two-decade career in law enforcement. In 2018, at the age of 60, Hanson was diagnosed with ALS, caused by what his widow says was exposure to toxic metals at the site, and died six months later.
Hanson says ALS isn’t considered a 9/11 illness and that she’s been denied his survivor benefits from New York City 13 times since.
“Now they are saying they want me to send proof of why Mike had high levels of antimony. Well, obviously he got it from ground zero,” says Hanson. “It was shown to be there. They just don’t want to do it because it’ll open the door to thousands.”
Hanson won a lawsuit against the city in 2022, but the decision was overturned in an appeal. According to court documents provided by the New York City Law Department, the ruling found that Hanson "failed to meet her burden of showing that her husband's death was caused by a qualifying condition."
A legal representative for the city says the case was sent back to the Police Pension Fund and is still pending.
They did not provide further comment.
Hanson reached out to Sen. James Skoufis for help who says he’s spoken to Mayor Eric Adams multiple times and is “outraged and disgusted” by their decision.
“In the three years Eric Adams has been mayor, I’ve made precisely one, single request of his office: spare the Hanson family further torture, demonstrate some humanity and respect the lower court’s ruling in the Hansons’ favor. Challenging a 9/11 widow’s death benefit and dragging the family back to court for countless additional years is contemptible.”
Hanson and her husband raised three daughters in Orange County. Now, she resides in North Carolina by herself. She participated in a walk over the Surf City Bridge Wednesday in memory of those who lost their lives during the attacks and says she’ll never stop fighting for her husband’s service and ultimate sacrifice to be recognized.
“He would be disgusted,” says Hanson. “He made me promise never to stop fighting.”
