Final rule from the Department of Labor makes compensation, medical benefits available to more workers affected by toxic Beryllium exposure, including Hanford Workers
ICYMI: Senate Passes Murray’s Bill to Help Hanford Workers Suffering from Toxic Beryllium Exposure
Washington, D.C.– U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), a senior member and former Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, issued the following statement applauding the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) final rule, announced this week, updating eligibility requirements for current and former nuclear weapons workers, including those at Hanford, seeking to file benefits claims related to beryllium sensitivity; the rule will clarify regulations to ensure benefits are available to people once deemed ineligible—the rulemaking updates regulations to reflect the enactment of the Beryllium Testing Fairness Act that Senator Murray got passed into law in December 2023 as part of the NDAA. More information for nuclear weapons workers can be found here.
Prior to the passage of Fiscal Year 2024 NDAA, which included Senator Murray’s Beryllium Testing Fairness Act, federal laws placed an overly burdensome proof of illness requirement on nuclear weapons complex workers, preventing many workers from getting the care they need for diseases caused by beryllium exposure. In this rulemaking, the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs updated its regulations to reflect the new eligibility requirements in Senator Murray’s Beryllium Testing Fairness Act for those filing claims for beryllium sensitivity.
“I have always cared deeply about the safety and wellbeing of the workers at Hanford—I believe I have a serious obligation as their voice in the United States Senate to fight for the protections and benefits they deserve. Hanford workers should not have to jump through unnecessary hoops to get the care they need—and once my bill became law, we finally updated the statute so it’s consistent with modern science. Thanks to the Biden administration’s final rule, there is more certainty that workers can access the care they so desperately need, and not lose precious time in getting help to treat this awful disease.”
Senator Murray introduced the Beryllium Testing Fairness Act last September—after meeting with Hanford workers—to expand access to care for diseases caused by beryllium exposure. Currently, federal law places an outdated overly burdensome proof of illness requirement on nuclear weapons complex workers, preventing many workers from getting the care they need. The Beryllium Testing Fairness Act updated these testing requirements to be consistent with the latest science to ensure that more nuclear complex weapons workers—past and present—dealing with health issues caused by beryllium exposure receive the health care benefits they need and deserve. Senator Murray spoke on the Senate floor about her legislation last July—video is HERE and additional information about the legislation is HERE.
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