So, what actually happened with the squashed bill giving aid to 9/11 first responders and why were Rep. Anthony Weiner and Rep. Peter King arguing over it?: Our Insiders wanted to know what was in it and why it was killed, here is what our Brainroom came up with:

Funding
The bill creates a World Trade Center Health Program Fund to fund the new program. It requires that New York contribute 10% of the cost of the program, and requires that the remaining 90% of the funding be deposited from the federal Treasury into the new fund. The funding would be available for the new health program without specific congressional appropriations.

Specifically, it requires that the following amounts, representing the federal share of 90% of total funding, be deposited into the fund:

* $71 million in the last quarter of FY 2011;
* $318 million in FY 2012;
* $354 million in FY 2013;
* $382 million in FY 2014;
* $431 million in FY 2015;
* $481 million in FY 2016;
* $537 million in FY 2017;
* $601 million in FY 2018;
* $173 million in FY 2019; and
* Up to an additional $499 million in FY 2019 and up to $743 million in FY 2020.

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VIDEO: Sen Gillibrand: 9/11 First Responders Are Our Bravest; We Have to Stand By Them

Peter Johnson, Jr. Asks: Have We Forgotten the 9/11 Heroes?

WATCH: Reps. Peter King, Anthony Weiner Get Heated Over 9/11 Responders Bill During Live Interview
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Click “more” to learn even more about this bill.

Suspension of the Rules:-Suspension of the rules is an expedited procedure that limits debate and bars amendments.
-Republicans complained that Democrats did not allow them a chance to amend the measure because it was brought up on the suspension calendar.
-Normally used for routine matters, such as the naming of post offices, the suspension procedure allows for only 40 minutes of debate, prohibits amendments and requires a two-thirds majority vote for passage.

Bill Status

-Legislation (HR 847) that would establish a medical program for people exposed to harmful debris from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks was voted down in the House Thursday after Republicans took issue with the bill’s funding offsets.

-In a vote of 255-159, the legislation was defeated, short 21 votes.

-Members of the minority have generally opposed the bill (HR 847) – although it has had some Republican supporters – saying the measure amounts to yet another entitlement program. But Republicans raised new objections over an offset in the bill that would place limits on how foreign-based companies can use tax treaties to shift income outside the United States.

-A companion measure (S 1334), sponsored by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., has been introduced in the Senate. The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee held a hearing on that version of the legislation in June, but the panel has not yet acted on the bill.

Maybe after the recess…

-Democrats accused Republicans of being callous and vowed to bring the bill back for another vote in the fall.

-Thursday evening, the three lead sponsors – New York Reps. Carolyn Malloney (D), Jerrold Nadler (D) and Peter King (R) – issued a joint statement.

“Today’s vote showed that we have the support we need to pass the Zadroga Act, and we look forward to passing the bill with a simple majority when Congress returns from its August recess,” they said.

Short Summary of HR 847 — September 11 Health Program & Compensation Fund
The bill creates a new program to provide medical services and health monitoring for first responders and others who have conditions related to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and it re-opens the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund to provide compensation for economic losses.

-Under the bill, the Health and Human Services Department would run a program to treat and monitor individuals who have medical problems that resulted from exposure to the 2001 attacks or subsequent debris removal, including first-responders, construction workers and residents who lived near the Twin Towers in New York. The measure also requires the program to research conditions that may be related to the exposure, as well as diagnostic methods and treatment.

…Although the legislation was initially crafted to provide assistance to those involved with the collapse of the World Trade Center, responders to the attack on the Pentagon and the plane crash in Shanksville, Pa., would also be eligible for some components of the program.

-Enrollment for the program, which would expire after 10 years, would be capped at 25,000 patients at any time; and federal funding would be capped at just under $4.6 billion over the period of the program.

-New York would be required to cover 10 percent of the cost, with the city’s costs capped at $500 million over 10 years.

-Aside from the new medical program, the legislation would reopen the enrollment process for the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund (PL 107-42). Congress created the fund in September 2001 to provide money to those who were injured during the attack or during debris removal, and to families of those who died during the terrorist attacks. Claims had to be filed by the end of 2003.

-The bill rejected Thursday would allow individuals to file claims until the end of 2031.

-The Congressional Budget Office estimates the health care and compensation programs would increase mandatory spending by $7.4 billion over 10 years.

-To pay for the spending hike, the bill would change the tax withholding rules for certain payments made by U.S. subsidiaries of foreign corporations.

Eligibility

Under the bill, responders who are eligible for the current World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Program would be eligible under the new program. In addition, certain employees of the New York Fire Department, and certain employees of the New York or New Jersey police and port authority would be defined as WTC responders who would be eligible for the program. Members of fire and police departments, as well as certain volunteers or contract workers who participated in rescue and recovery efforts at the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania, and who are determined to be at an increased risk of developing a health condition caused by the attacks, also would be defined as eligible for the program.

The bill also creates a category of “modified” eligibility for those who performed rescue, recovery or clean-up services in the New York disaster area, regardless of whether they were part of a law enforcement agency. HHS would determine specific eligibility criteria for this category of eligibility.

The measure limits enrollment in the program at any time to 25,000 people, of whom no more than 2,500 could be individuals in the modified eligibility category.

It also bars individuals who are on the terrorist watch list maintained by the Homeland Security Department from begin eligible for the WTC Program.

Scope of Treatment

The services covered by the WTC Program would include physician services, diagnostic and laboratory tests, inpatient and outpatient prescription drugs, inpatient and outpatient hospital services, and other services determined to be medically necessary by the program. Such services would be provided without cost-sharing requirement (e.g., a “co-pay”) for eligible participants in the program.

The bill requires HHS to reimburse providers for medical services (except for outpatient pharmaceutical products) at the payment rates that would apply under the Federal Employees Compensation Act. It directs HHS to contract with vendors to provide outpatient prescription drugs.

In addition, the measure requires HHS to create a nationwide network of health care providers who would provide benefits to those participants who live outside of the New York area.

WTC Survivors Benefits

The bill makes certain “WTC survivors” eligible for certain medical benefits. Generally, these individuals would include members of the community in the area of lower Manhattan that was affected by the terrorist attacks, individuals who were exposed to dust because they worked or attended school in the area, or those who participated in clean-up efforts but were not considered “first responders.”

The measure directs HHS to create an application process by which people could apply to be eligible for medical treatment and monitoring. Individuals who are determined to be eligible survivors would receive the same monitoring and treatment of WTC-related health conditions as first responders.

In addition, the measure permits the WTC Program to provide medical treatment to any other individuals if they are diagnosed as having a WTC-related health condition. Funding for these additional individuals would be limited to $20 million for FY 2012, and the limit would be indexed for inflation in the following years.

CBO Cost Estimate

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates that the modified bill would increase direct (mandatory) spending by $7.4 billion through FY 2020, with $4.2 billion resulting from the provisions relating to the Victims Compensation Fund and $3.2 billion resulting from the new health program.

CBO, along with JCT, also estimate that the measure would also increase revenue by $7.4 billion through FY 2020 as a result of the changes to withholding rules, and that it also would shift revenue from FY 2016 to FY 2015 because of the provisions changing estimated corporate tax payments in 2015.

Because the measure affects mandatory spending and revenue, pay-as-you-procedures would apply to the bill. CBO estimates that the net effect of the measure would be to reduce the deficit by $120 million over the five-year period through FY 2015, and to have no net effect on the deficit over the 10-year period through FY 2020.

CBO estimates that the compensation fund provisions could result in additional outlays of $2.4 billion after FY 2020, mostly in FY 2021 and FY 2022.