Jon Stewart stood with 100 9/11 first responders Wednesday, according to ABC News as they lobbied for an extension of 9/11 health programs. Stewart supports the permanent extension of the 9/11 Health and Compensation Act, which gives survivors and first responders from Sept. 11 compensation, health screenings and health care benefits.
"I am here today basically to apologize to all these men and women, that you had to come down here today...I am embarrassed for our country. I am embarrassed for New York," Stewart said in a speech, according to The New York Daily News. "Nobody had to lobby you to rush to those towers that day," he said. Stewart wore a New York Fire Department T-shirt.
Stewart is not alone in his support of the Health and Compensation Act. The bill Stewart is lobbying for has 145 sponsors from the House supporting it, along with senators representing 41 different states. The bill is not scheduled to be brought to the floor for voting, however. The current law providing benefits is scheduled to expire in October, according to The Miami Herald. It's known as the Zadroga Act, named for one of the first responders who died at Ground Zero, and went into effect in 2010.
