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The Department of Energy (DOE) has overall responsibility
for assessing the health of persons who work at the
Oak Ridge Reservation. Numerous research programs
and studies have been completed, and others are ongoing.
For nonworkers, DOE has funded states and other agencies
to conduct extensive programs of research to evaluate
whether persons not working at the reservation but
living nearby may have adverse health effects related
to exposure to hazardous substances from the site.
HHS Public Health Activities
at U.S. DOE Sites
DOE funds a program of independent research and
public health activities with three agencies within
HHS that conduct these public health activities:
the National Institute for Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH); the National Center for Environmental
Health (NCEH); and the Agency for Toxic Substances
and Disease Registry (ATSDR). NIOSH conducts epidemiologic
studies of workers at DOE sites; NCEH conducts community-based
historical dose reconstruction projects and community
epidemiologic studies; and ATSDR conducts studies
of communities located near DOE Superfund sites to
determine if current contaminants in the environment
can result in adverse human health effects. Find
out more about these findings in the Agenda for HHS
Public Health Activities (2002-2007) at U.S. Department
of Energy Sites  (March
2002) (PDF)
Epidemiologic Surveillance
of Current Workers
Currently, DOE's Epidemiologic Surveillance program
is assessing the health of persons working at the
following Oak Ridge Reservation locations:
- Oak Ridge Reservation Nuclear Materials Production
Plant (Y-12)
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (formerly known
as X-10)
- East Tennessee Technology Park (formerly known
as K-25)
The goal of the program is to identify workers who
may have an increased risk of occupation-related
injury and illness. Find out more about DOE's epidemiologic
surveillance program at DOE's Epidemiologic
Surveillance Web site .
Evaluation of K-25 Workers
From 1996 to 2000, a total of 53 current and former
workers at the K-25 site received individual
medical evaluations from an independent panel
of nationally recognized occupational health physicians.
The evaluations were used to determine whether the
workers' symptoms and their personal reports of health
problems were related to their occupations.
Former Beryllium
Workers Medical Surveillance Program
Current and former workers exposed to beryllium
throughout the entire DOE complex are included in
the DOE Beryllium Worker Medical
Surveillance Program. Workers exposed to beryllium
dust or fumes may develop chronic beryllium disease
(CBD) or sensitivity to beryllium. The program aids
in detecting and diagnosing chronic beryllium disease,
improving worker protection methods, and minimizing
worker exposure.
Additional information on the beryllium workers
program is available at the Former
Beryllium Worker Medical Surveillance Program Web site or DOE's Chronic Beryllium Disease Prevention Web site.
Former Oak
Ridge Construction Workers Project
This pilot project will determine which former construction
workers may be at risk for health problems related
to their exposures at the Oak Ridge Reservation and
offer these workers an opportunity to participate
in a free medical screening program. The project,
led by Dr. Eula Bingham of the University of Chicago,
is being conducted in cooperation with the United
Brotherhood of Carpenters Health and Safety Fund,
the Center to Protect Workers' Rights, and the Medical
Center of Duke University.
Additional information is available at the DOE Former Worker Program Web site .
Former Production
Workers from Oak Ridge K-25, Paducah, and Portsmouth Gaseous
Diffusion Plants Project
This pilot project will determine which production
workers at gaseous diffusion plants might possibly
be at significant risk for health problems related
to their work exposure and will offer those workers
an opportunity to participate in a free medical screening
program. This project is being carried out by the
Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers
International Union (PACE), Queens College, and the
University of Massachusetts at Lowell.
Additional information is available at the DOE Former Worker Program Web site or
the Worker Health Protection Program
Web site.
Energy Employees
Occupational Illness Compensation Program
The U.S. Department of Labor administers a federal
compensation program that provides benefits ($150,000
plus medical benefits) to eligible employees and
former employees of DOE and its contractors and subcontractors
(and to survivors of eligible employees). The program
covers Oak Ridge Reservation workers ill with chronic
beryllium disease, silicosis, or with certain cancers
that have been linked to exposure to radiation
Additional information is available at the U.S. Department
of Labor Web site or by contacting Shirley White by phone
(865-481-0411 or toll free 1-866-481-0411) or by
e-mail (or.center@eh.doe.gov) at the Resource Center,
Jackson Plaza Office Complex, 800 Oak Ridge Turnpike
- Suite C-103, Oak Ridge, TN 37830.
The Department of Energy's Office of Advocacy will
assist workers in filling out claims forms for the
federal compensation program. For workers not covered
by the federal compensation program, the Office of
Advocacy will assist workers applying for the state
of Tennessee's workers' compensation program.
Additional information is available at the DOE Office of Advocacy Web site or
by phone (1-877-447-9756) and at the Tennessee Division of Workers'
Compensation Web site.
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