Ann Parham, a civilian Army librarian who suffered second-degree burns when a
fireball rolled over her, had her lost wages covered by employment
insurance--which would have paid for her plastic surgery too, had a physician
not donated his services.
The government bureaucracy could do little to repair the emotional wreckage of
Sept. 11, but it went a long way toward softening the financial blow.
Like others directly affected by the Sept. 11 attacks, the Pentagon victims are
eligible for tax-free awards from the government's Victims Compensation Fund,
which last week announced that beneficiaries could receive payments averaging
$1.6 million. That amount, however, will be reduced by the amount of money they
receive from other federal benefits, life insurance and pension benefits.
Donations they receive from any private charities would not affect the payout.
Unlike the eclectic group of people killed at the World Trade Center and on the
four hijacked planes, the survivors of uniformed military personnel also are
eligible for $250,000 in life insurance, a $6,000 death gratuity, six months of
free government housing, nearly $7,000 in burial costs, Social Security
benefits, health care coverage and counseling. Civilians were afforded other
compensation and, in a special order by the Defense Department, were assigned
military caseworkers.
All of that is separate and apart from what some estimate is more than $100
million in donations raised by Washington-area charities, many of which gathered
this month in frustration over how to get the waiting funds to those who need
them.
"I know we've been providing help. But I was sitting in a room with a bunch of
other organizations that have in some cases almost 10 times as much money
accrued for this relief effort and haven't paid out a dime. That's frustrating
to me," said Robyn Kehoe, Washington representative for the Federal Employee
Education & Assistance Fund, a private nonprofit set up in 1986 to assist
civilian federal employees in need. The fund has collected $2.5 million and has
paid out about $250,000 for mortgages, funerals, utilities, tuition and the
like.
With most of the urgent needs met--caseworkers say they know of no family in
dire straits--the next challenge is making families aware of the mountain of
cash still available as they adapt to their changed lives.
Finding them is the hard part. By law, the armed services cannot release the
names and addresses of victims, leaving the charities to track them down. Many
agencies are still not sure they have a complete list, and there is concern that
some people are not applying for assistance because they don't know it's there.
"You know there's a need and you're sitting there with the money--the money is
not the issue," said Greg Mason, deputy director for finance for the Army
Emergency Relief Society, which operates independently of the U.S. Army. "But
it's not like you put an ad in the newspaper and say all victims come see me.
It's Dick Tracy kind of work."
Just last week, the Navy relief corps paid the $2,000 tuition bill of a boy
whose father was killed in the Pentagon attack. The money might never have been
delivered had a neighbor who worked for the relief group not brought the case to
light.