Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation (DEEOIC)
JOTG Outreach Event in Denver, Colorado! – On February 19, 2014, officials from the Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation (DEEOIC) participated in two Town Hall Meetings (THMs) in Denver, Colorado to provide information to eligible workers on benefits that may be available to them under the new Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) designation for the Rocky Flats Plant (RFP) in Golden, Colorado. The new SEC class, effective January 11, 2014, covers RFP workers with 250 days of onsite employment between April 1, 1952 and December 31, 1983. The meetings were hosted by the Joint Outreach Task Group (JOTG) which is comprised of representatives from DEEOIC, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of the Ombudsman for the EEOICPA, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), DOE’s Former Worker Medical Screening Program, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Members of the JOTG were present at the meetings to provide information about the EEOICPA and to answer questions. Presentations were given by Rachel Leiton, Director, DEEOIC; Malcolm Nelson, DOL’s Ombudsman for the EEOICPA; Gregory Lewis, Director, Office of Worker Screening and Compensation Support of DOE’s Office of Health, Safety and Security; and John McInerney, MD, DOE Former Worker Medical Screening Program. The meetings were attended by additional staff members from NIOSH, the Denver District Office, Denver resource center, the Center for Construction Research & Training, the Building Trades National Medical Screening Program, and the Office of the Ombudsman. A total of 425 people attended the two sessions. Jeremy Rodriguez of Congressman Ed Perlmutter’s office was present for the morning meeting. The event drew press coverage including a TV crew from the local Fox News station; reporter Electa Draper along with a photographer with the Denver Post; and reporter Amy Woodward from the Golden Transcript. Fox News broadcast TV coverage of the meetings on the evening news on February 19, 2014; the Denver Post ran stories about the RFP meetings on February 18, 19, and 20; and the Golden Transcript ran an article on February 24, 2014.