Leaseholders of the World Trader Center now face a suit from recovery workers, after hundreds of thousands of people were exposed to toxics immediately after the 9/11 attacks. This comes at the same time that a report reveals the government has not monitored or studied people suffering adverse health effects from 9/11. Fourteen plaintiffs, including police officers, firefighters, transit workers, and other rescue workers filed the lawsuit Sept. 10. The law firm handling the case said more than 800 other plaintiffs are participating and that number could increase. The plaintiffs claim workers were not advised of the health risks in lower Manhattan, and proper precautions were not taken by the leaseholders of the trade towers. According to the law firm, additional actions will be taken against local governments in New York and New Jersey, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The General Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on Sept. 8 regarding the health effects from the aftermath of 9/11. It found that up to 400,000 New Yorkers breathed some of the most toxic air ever recorded. According to the report, "Almost all the firefighters who responded to the attack experienced respiratory harm, and hundreds had to end their firefighting careers due to WTC-related respiratory illness." It also states that the government has not made an effort to study the health effects of exposure in New York City and across the country. The lawsuit seeks legislation that would set up testing programs for exposed citizens. After the attacks, a great deal of controversy arose concerning the accuracy of EPA statements about the safety of lower Manhattan. An Aug. 21, 2003 EPA Inspector General's report revealed that EPA statements to the public immediately after 9/11 did not fully represent the data the agency possessed. The White House apparently influenced the wording of the statements to downplay potential health risks mentioned in EPA's original drafts. These statements misinformed people who lived and worked in lower Manhattan that the area was safe. However, a subsequent Senate Environment and Public Works Committee report concluded that EPA and the White House did not act inappropriately in addressing public health concerns in New York City after 9/11.