As the 9/11 Health and Compensation act comes closer to cloture in the Senate, the deadly Ground Zero environment at the heart of the debate has reared its ugly head again. Retired Detective Kevin Czartoryski passed away on Sunday. Lung cancer, which he developed after working at ground zero, is the presumed cause of death. The detective, who worked in the Narcotics Division and in the Hate Crimes Task Force before moving to the press office after 9/11, gained distinction as a liaison between the NYPD and the city's LGBT community. He was 46.

Commissioner Ray Kelly, who visited Czartoryski last week, said of him: "He was a consummate professional and a cheerful bridge for understanding, who will be missed terribly." There will be a funeral Thursday at St. Raphael’s Church on 3520 Greenpoint Avenue in Long Island City.

Meanwhile, the 9/11 health bill has already passed in the house but now needs to come to a final vote the Senate—right now it is short just one Republican vote. If it dies in the Senate though, things will get worse before they get better. The bill only got 17 votes in the current House and would presumably not go anywhere when the Republicans take back over next month. As Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Queens) explained in November, "If we're not able to pass the 9/11 bill in the lame duck, I think the reasonable conclusion is it's dead."