March 30, 2016

Expansion may give former Battelle Laboratories workers in Columbus, Ohio easier access to EEOICPA compensation for illnesses

Expansion: Former Battelle Laboratories employees who worked at the King Avenue site in Columbus, Ohio, may qualify for a presumption of causation if they are included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees, and have a diagnosis of one of 22 specified cancers.

March 15, 2016

Assistance in Bridgeton, Missouri for current, former nuclear weapons workers, families, survivors to claim benefits, check claim status

Event: The U.S. Department of Labor will host a two-day outreach event for current and former nuclear weapons workers, and their families and survivors in Bridgeton, Missouri, on Tuesday, March 29 and Wednesday, March 30.

December 1, 2015

OWCP News Brief: Assistance available for current, former nuclear weapons workers and uranium miners in Northwest New Mexico [12/01/2015]

Event: U.S. Department of Labor representatives will host outreach sessions in New Mexico — in Farmington on Dec. 8 and in Grants on Dec. 9 — to assist current and former nuclear weapons workers and uranium miners in the state. Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Denver District Office staff will provide information about the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act and the medical benefits available under the program.

November 23, 2015

OWCP News Brief: Assistance available for nuclear weapons workers in Western New York [11/23/2015]

Event: U.S. Department of Labor representatives will be available in two sessions in Niagara Falls, New York, on Dec. 2, 2015, to assist former nuclear weapons workers with the filing of new claims and provide status updates on existing claims under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

November 19, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Labor Department proposes rule to update implementation of Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act [11/19/2015]

WASHINGTON — A proposed rule could improve the U.S. Department of Labor's administration of a law governing workers' compensation for energy employees. Proposed by the department's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, the rule would amend regulations governing its administration of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. These regulations were last revised on Dec. 29, 2006.

October 29, 2015

OWCP News Brief: Expansion may give former Hooker Electrochemical Corp. nuclear weapons workers easier access to EEOICPA compensation for illnesses [10/29/2015]

Expansion: Former Hooker Electrochemical Corp. workers may qualify for a presumption of causation if they are included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees, and were diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers. For nuclear weapons workers applying for compensation under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act, a presumption of causation can simplify the process.

September 29, 2015

OWCP News Brief: OWCP and NIOSH create quality assurance program for black lung chest X-ray evaluations [09/29/2015]

Participants: U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Agreement description: On Sept. 24, OWCP and NIOSH entered into a formal memorandum of understanding establishing a quality assurance program for X-rays used to evaluate whether claimants are entitled to black lung benefits based on the presence of complicated pneumoconiosis.

September 10, 2015

OWCP News Brief: Expansion may give former New Jersey Westinghouse Electric Corp. nuclear weapons workers easier access to EEOICPA compensation for illnesses [09/10/2015]

Expansion: Former Westinghouse Electric Corp. workers may qualify for a presumption of causation if they are included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees, and diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers. For nuclear weapons workers applying for compensation under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act, a presumption of causation can simplify the process.

July 21, 2015

OWCP News Release: Nominations sought for advisory board on nuclear weapons worker health [07/21/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs is seeking nominations for membership on the newly created Advisory Board on Toxic Substances and Worker Health for Part E of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. The act provides compensation and medical benefits to nuclear weapons workers diagnosed with medical conditions caused by their exposure to toxic substances at covered nuclear facilities.

July 9, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Labor Department to host town hall meetings in Texas to assist current and former nuclear weapons workers [07/09/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor along with other federal agencies will host two town hall meetings on July 23 in Amarillo, Texas. The meetings will provide current and former nuclear weapons workers, including those employed at the Pantex Plant, with information regarding benefits available to them under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

July 9, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Department of Labor to assist current and former Pennsylvania nuclear weapons workers at traveling resource center in Kensington [07/09/2015]

WASHINGTON — U.S. Department of Labor representatives will host information sessions in Pennsylvania on July 22 in New Kensington to inform current and former nuclear weapons workers from 25 covered facilities in the state about the benefits available to them under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

July 9, 2015

OWCP News Release: Change may give former Hanford nuclear weapons contractors easier access to EEOICPA compensation for illnesses [07/09/2015]

RICHLAND, Wash. — Former U.S. Department of Energy contractors and subcontractors who worked at the Hanford site in Richland may qualify for a presumption of causation if they are included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees, and diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers. The change comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services amended its Special Exposure Cohort in May 2015. This SEC designation took effect on June 21, 2015.

July 9, 2015

OWCP News Release: Change may give Grand Junction Facilities, Dow Chemical nuclear weapons workers easier access to EEOICPA compensation for illnesses [07/09/2015]

WASHINGTON — Former employees of the Grand Junction Facilities site in Grand Junction, Colorado, and the Dow Chemical Co. site in Pittsburg, California, may qualify for a presumption of causation if they are included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees and diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers. The change comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services amended its Special Exposure Cohort in May 2015.

June 2, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Labor Department to participate in town hall meetings in Bridgeton, Missouri, to assist nuclear weapons workers [06/02/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor and other federal agencies will host two town hall meetings on June 16 and 17 in Bridgeton, Missouri. The meetings will provide current and former nuclear weapons employees who worked at 11 covered facilities in Missouri with information regarding benefits available to them under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

May 27, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Department of Labor hosting traveling resource centers in Grand Junction, Colo., and Moab, Utah, on June 10 and 11 to assist nuclear weapons workers [05/27/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor will host a traveling resource center in Grand Junction, Colo., on Wednesday, June 10, and in Moab, Utah, on Thursday, June 11, to provide the public with information about the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act and the medical benefits available under the program.

May 27, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Department of Labor hosting traveling resource centers in Grand Junction, Colo., and Moab, Utah, on June 10 and 11 to assist nuclear weapons workers [05/27/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor will host a traveling resource center in Grand Junction, Colo., on Wednesday, June 10, and in Moab, Utah, on Thursday, June 11, to provide the public with information about the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act and the medical benefits available under the program.

April 28, 2015

OWCP News Release: Black Lung Benefits Act rule proposal protects coal miners' health [04/28/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs is publishing for public comment a proposed Black Lung Benefits Act rule that gives coal miners greater access to their health records and requires coal miner owners to pay all benefits due in a claim before the award can be challenged through modification. The NPRM was posted on the Federal Register's website for public inspection today.

April 21, 2015

OWCP News Release: US Department of Labor brings traveling resource center to Newport News to inform current and former nuclear weapons workers about benefits [04/21/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's traveling resource center will visit Newport News, Virginia, on April 28, to inform nuclear weapons workers about benefits available to them under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

March 12, 2015

OWCP News Release: Direct Final Rule and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeks to modernize document and info transmission of Longshore claims [03/12/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs is expanding the means by which documents and information can be transmitted between OWCP and its stakeholders. A direct final rule and a proposed rule published in the March 12 issue of the Federal Register apply to claims handled by OWCP's longshore program.

March 11, 2015

OWCP News Release: Town hall meetings in Colorado will assist nuclear weapons workers [03/11/2015]

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor will host three town hall meetings on March 18 in Westminster, Colorado, to provide nuclear weapons workers, including those who worked at the Rocky Flats Plant, with information about the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act and the medical benefits provided to approved claimants under the program.