WTC Records Folder 0128 Disaster Information General label, 2001

NYC 9/11 Public Portal Document

Responding to Terrorism Victims - Oklahoma City and Beyond Page 3 of 10

mental health providers about the impact of victimization and effective models for treating victims and responders. Experience with violent victimization and terrorist incidents have shown that mental health services need to be in place for years, especially if the criminal justice process is ongoing. States should allocate funding for these services and maximize

public and private resources for providing mental health services.

Recommendation 5

Application requirements and processing of crime victim compensation and other types of services should be streamlined and simplified for victims to reduce the burden on victims and to ensure that the process is victim friendly, that assistance is timely, that paperwork is minimal, and that agencies work together and share information.

Discussion Agencies and organizations that make public and private benefits available to crime victims should develop necessary protocols and procedures to simplify application processes without compromising necessary checks and balances. In addition, they should offer assistance in completing forms and coordinate benefits to victims and survivors. Within the Guide to Responding to Mass-Casualty Incidents, members of the National Association of Crime Victims Compensation Boards (NACVCB) have included a special protocol for handling compensation claims for victims of terrorism cases. Agencies and organizations should consider establishing contractual relationships with service providing entities such as hospitals, funeral homes, and mental health providers to facilitate direct billing whenever possible, thereby relieving the victim of additional and often confusing paperwork.

Recommendation 6

Local, state, and federal agencies responding to victims of a terrorist act should consider establishing an `5tnmet needs" committee or task force that includes private organizations to ensure that the needs of victims are identified and addressed and that all of the available resources are coordinated and used on behalf of victims.

Discussion In addition to creating a special task force to review unmet needs and coordinate resources in the aftermath of a terrorist incident, the NACVCB's Guide to Responding to Mass-Casualty Incidents recommends that state compensation programs consider establishing an advisory group to create a directory of resources with local, state, and national information about benefits and services available to victims of crime and mass disasters.

Recommendation 7

States should consider establishing an emergency fund or a process by which emergency funds can be quickly allocated to respond to cases of terrorism This

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