UFA: Retirees Misled By '3621' About Zadroga Act; Clash on In-House Monitoring
By ARI PAUL
Uniformed Firefighters Association Health and Safety Officer William Romaka is counseling retired Fire Department members against joining the opposition to a portion of Federal legislation that requires FDNY oversight of post-9/11 medical monitoring and treatment.

WILLIAM ROMAKA: Questions credibility of opposition.

The James Zadroga Act would secure Federal funding for workers and residents with illnesses and injuries related to their presence near Ground Zero or work done at other locations related to the World Trade Center search for victims. Local 3621 of District Council 37, which represents Emergency Medical Service officers, opposes one aspect of the bill that would keep FDNY member treatment and monitoring in-house, while the UFA and the unions representing fire officers, Paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians support the bill as is.

'Not in Our Best Interest'

In letters to several fire responder group members, Mr. Romaka broadly rejected Local 3621's concerns and warned them against meeting with that union's outspoken pension consultant, Marianne Pizzitola.

MARIANNE PIZZITOLA: 'Can't take a strong woman.'

"Do you truthfully believe it is in any firefighter's best interest to be in a group outside the FDNY?" Mr. Romaka asked in an Aug. 18 letter that this newspaper obtained last week. "It is our data that drives this train because we have had complete medicals before that fateful day and can produce pristine data that is used to get the best and earliest possible treatment and funding. That being said, you still have and have always had, as a retiree, the right to go anywhere for your monitoring and treatment, contrary to [Ms. Pizzitola's] erroneous [assertions]."

Ms. Pizzitola and Local 3621 President Tom Eppinger have said that compelling FDNY members to accept department monitoring would limit their freedom to use medical centers of their choice. The UFA and Local 2507 of DC 37, which represents Paramedics and EMTs, have disputed this claim.

Mr. Eppinger has pushed for an amendment that he said would offer the same options to FDNY members as Police Department members.

Opposition Delaying Passage?

Mr. Romaka claimed that Local 3621's opposition to the provision was hurting the Zadroga Act's prospects of passage (it was shelved by Congress Sept. 28, but that was reportedly due to Mayor Bloomberg's objections on another aspect), and he insisted that retirees should not interact with Ms. Pizzitola on the issue at all.

"How insane is it to be taking advice from a retired EMS person whose issues are so different from firefighters?" he said. "Sitting down with her, or her puppet Eppinger, can and will not accomplish anything, as I consider them closed-minded people whose issues are so different from ours as previous encounters have demonstrated."

Ken Dolan, a past president of the Long Island Association of Retired NYC Firefighters who had met with Ms. Pizzitola, responded to the UFA official in an e-mail, "Before you dismiss what she is trying to accomplish, how about sitting down with her and other retiree group presidents and discuss the nuances of the aforementioned legislation. It's the right thing to do."

Ms. Pizzitola is also the founder and president of the Uniformed FDNY EMS Retirees Association, and has along with Mr. Eppinger publicly supported the rest of the Zadroga Act in testimony to the City Council and to members of the U.S. Congress.

"The UFA has a problem with a strong, educated woman who advocates for her members," she said in a phone interview responding to Mr. Romaka's letter. "I don't think they like the work that I do because it makes them look bad."