Cantwell Urges Fair Treatment of Hanford Workers as National Safety and Health Panel Takes Up Issue

Cantwell Urges Fair Treatment of Hanford Workers as National Safety and Health Panel Takes Up Issue

At meeting, Advisory Board on nuclear worker health considers deficiencies in Hanford worker radiation exposure data

Thursday, as the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Advisory Board met in Ohio, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) urged a thorough review of a petition for compensation submitted by former Hanford workers, and called on the Board to examine in full the deficiency in Hanford worker radiation exposure data reported in a 2005 audit. At the NIOSH Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health quarterly meeting, the Board's Hanford Working Group will report on the status of compensation for former Hanford workers who may have been exposed to radiation.

"America's nuclear workforce has a rich tradition of hard work and tremendous sacrifice," said Cantwell, a member of the Senate Energy Committee. "These workers made our country more secure, and we now need to give them the assistance they deserve and are owed. There is simply no room for compromise when it comes to workers' safety or health, and we have a responsibility to step up, end years of delays, and help the many Hanford workers who were exposed to chronic levels of unmonitored radiation."

NIOSH is currently reviewing a petition submitted by former Hanford workers for compensation for work-related illnesses. The petition covers all employees from January 1, 1942 through December 31, 1990. The workers submitted the petition for Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) status in November, and NIOSH will issue a recommendation within 180 days of accepting the petition. The NIOSH Advisory Board will then review the petition independently and submit a recommendation to the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Cantwell is urging NIOSH and the NIOSH Advisory Board to consider during the review process the findings of an audit released in June 2005 that reviewed the Hanford Site Profile—a case history of activities at the Hanford nuclear facility. The audit, prepared by S. Cohen & Associates (SC&A, Inc.), suggests that a possible deficiency in data on worker radiation exposure between 1944 and 1968 may lead officials to unfairly deny workers access to the compensation they need to help cover medical care. SEC status, which the workers' petition seeks, would make former employees automatically eligible for workers' compensation. Without SEC status, deficiencies in radiation exposure data may make it impossible for many of these workers to get compensation for radiation-related illnesses.

At the Advisory Board's meeting, the Hanford Working Group will report on the status of its review of the SC&A petition and the Hanford Site Profile. In an Energy Hearing Wednesday, Cantwell also questioned Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman about funding for medical screening and worker's compensation—which the Department of Energy is trying to cut.

[Cantwell's statement for the record, submitted to the NIOSH Advisory Board, follows below]

I want to thank Chairman Ziemer and members of the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health for the opportunity to submit testimony about issues relating to the review of the Hanford site profile and the Hanford Special Exposure Cohort petition that was recently qualified. In addition, I want to thank Dr. Melius and the Hanford Working Group for their efforts to organize issue-specific discussions between NIOSH and SC&A, and keeping the process moving toward a resolution. Too many workers at Hanford have waited years for help and they deserve a comprehensive review without further delays.

One of the Hanford Working Group's primary goals is to provide clarity on some of the difficult issues in question between the NIOSH Hanford Site Profile and findings from the SC&A review of the Hanford Site Profile, both of which entail a great deal of complexity and a considerable amount of technical information. For example, the issue of neutron-to-photon ratio methodology for dose reconstruction is a concern that needs careful examination by the Working Group. The potential that reactor workers at Hanford were exposed to chronic levels of unmonitored neutrons is an issue that NIOSH should explore further and not dismiss.

I also want to take a brief moment to comment on the Hanford Special Exposure Cohort petition that NIOSH recently qualified, which would cover all employees at Hanford from January 1, 1942 through December 31, 1990. This petition is a resource providing critical information so that we may better understand the full extent of workers' exposure to toxins. I am concerned that without carefully examining this petition, we might wrongly deny worker's compensation to thousands of deserving Hanford employees who have already waited too long. I have full confidence that NIOSH will give the petition a fair and thorough review.

I have enjoyed working with the board to move the Hanford review process forward. It is my hope that the board ultimately resolves some of the worker compensation issues that have long plagued many workers and their families for years at Hanford. In particular, workers at Hanford deserve a Special Exposure Cohort designation.

America's nuclear workforce has a rich tradition of hard work and tremendous sacrifice that has kept our country secure. There's no room for compromise when it comes to workers' safety or health. Time is of the essence and those workers who have become significantly exposed to unmeasured neutrons deserve quick action and we have a responsibility to step up and deliver it.

Thank you again for allowing me to submit testimony and I look forward to continue working with the Advisory Board on worker compensation issues at Hanford.

http://cantwell.senate.gov/news/record.cfm?id=268895&&days=30&