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NEW PROGRAM MAY PROVIDE ADDITIONAL COMPENSATION & BENEFITS

WASHINGTON, DC - Individuals who were awarded compensation under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act are eligible for additional funds and benefits, the Justice Department announced today. Under the new program being launched by the Departments of Energy and Labor on July 31, 2001, those individuals, or their eligible survivors, approved for compensation under Section 5 of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), could also be eligible under the new Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program (EEOICPA).

Under EEOICPA, eligible individuals could receive compensation of up to an additional $50,000 and future medical benefits related to the condition for which they received compensation under RECA. Those, who are eligible, are not required to have already received payment under RECA in order to qualify for the additional compensation and benefits under EEOICPA.

Individuals approved under the RECA Program and awarded $100,000 in compensation, are not required to file another claim form under the RECA Program. Instead, an EEOICPA claim form, which can be sent in immediately, should be filed. The Department of Labor will begin processing claims when the law goes into effect on July 31st.

Under EEOICPA, surviving spouses are eligible for benefits if they were married to eligible uranium miners at the time of their death. Children are also eligible if their parent was a uranium miner who was approved for compensation under Section 5 of RECA, and (1) they were under 18 or full-time students under age 23 when their parent died or, (2) they were 18 or older but incapable of self-support when their parent died.

The Justice Department is distributing letters to individuals who may be eligible that will include copies of EEOICPA claim forms and a Privacy Act Release. If the recipient was once a uranium miner, he or she should fill out Form EE-1, " Claim for Benefits under Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act." If the recipient is the survivor of a uranium miner, Form EE-2, " Claim for Survivor Benefits under Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act," should be filed.

Applicants will also need to sign the enclosed Privacy Act Release, which will allow the Justice Department to release to the Department of Labor information from the RECA claim file needed to process the EEOICPA claim. Disclosure of the information contained in the RECA file is voluntary; however, it may not be possible to process the EEOICPA claim without the information.

Former uranium miners (rather than the survivor of a former miner) may be eligible for medical benefits related to the condition for which they were approved under RECA. Any medical benefits received will be paid from the date the claim is filed, but no earlier than July 31, 2001.

The processing of claims could be delayed if RECA Award Letters are not attached. Also, in order to expedite processing, EEOICPA claim forms should not be sent to the Justice Department.