The Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act (EEOICPA) was passed by Congress in 2000 and is designed to compensate individuals who worked in

nuclear weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions ( thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bom ...

production and as a result of occupational exposures contracted certain illnesses. EEOICPA was signed into law by President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

on October 30, 2000.

Executive Order 13179

Executive Order 13179 states the following:

Program administration

The program is administered by four Federal agencies, and the Department of Labor (DOL) has the primary responsibility for administering the compensation program. EEOICPA, as amended, has four sections:Department of Labo
EEOICP
/ref> * Part A establishes the compensation program. * Part B covers individuals, or certain survivors of individuals, who worked at a covered facility and have developed

beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to for ...

sensitivity, chronic beryllium disease, chronic

silicosis Silicosis is a form of occupational lung disease caused by inhalation of crystalline silica dust. It is marked by inflammation and scarring in the form of nodular lesions in the upper lobes of the lungs. It is a type of pneumoconiosis. Silic ...

, or a radiogenic

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

. Compensation under Part B is a lump sum payment of $150,000, except for eligible individuals who already received payment under Section 5 of the

Radiation Exposure Compensation Act The United States Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) is a federal statute providing for the monetary compensation of people, including atomic veterans, who contracted cancer and a number of other specified diseases as a direct result of t ...

(RECA). RECA individuals will only receive a lump sum payment of $50,000. In addition to the lump sum payment, compensation includes medical benefits from the date an individual files a claim. * Part C contains a number of provisions relating to the administration of EEOICPA and its relationship to other Federal and State laws. * Part D was repealed on October 28, 2004 and replaced with Part E, which is for certain individuals, or certain survivors of individuals, who worked at a Department of Energy facility or a uranium mine or mill and developed any illness that resulted from work-related exposure to

toxins A toxin is a naturally occurring organic poison produced by metabolic activities of living cells or organisms. Toxins occur especially as a protein or conjugated protein. The term toxin was first used by organic chemist Ludwig Brieger (1849� ...

. Compensation under Part E is variable up to $250,000 based on wage loss, impairment, and survivorship. Facilities that are covered under the Act are determined by DOL and the

Department of Energy A Ministry of Energy or Department of Energy is a government department in some countries that typically oversees the production of fuel and electricity; in the United States, however, it manages nuclear weapons development and conducts energy-re ...

(DOE).

Radiation dose reconstruction

For claims filed under Part B for cancers that may have been caused by occupational radiation exposure, DOL sends the claim to the

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, ) is the United States federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the C ...

(NIOSH) Division of Compensation Analysis and Support for a

radiation dose reconstruction Radiation dose reconstruction refers to the process of estimating radiation doses that were received by individuals or populations in the past as a result of particular exposure situations of concern.''A Review of the Dose Reconstruction Program of ...

. NIOSH requests the energy employee's individual exposure records from DOE and interviews the claimant or survivors to obtain information to use in the dose reconstruction. NIOSH also collects all relevant data regarding the individual's work site, if available, to complete the dose reconstruction. Once the dose reconstruction is complete, NIOSH sends the dose reconstruction back to DOL and DOL makes compensation decisions. All other Part B claims and all Part E claims remain at DOL for review and compensation determinations.

Implementation

In July 2001, nine Energy Employee Compensation Resource Centers were opened as a joint initiative of Departments of Labor and Energy. They were staffed and resourced to assist workers and their families with the lodgement of claims. The Department of Energy was to provide exposure data and work documentation. There are currently eleven Resource Centers.

Status of claims

As of 15 September 2019, EEOICP has provided $16,910,292,048 in compensation and medical bill payments to sick workers and their families.

References