By CLW Staff
Time is running out to help victims of radiation-borne illnesses get long-overdue compensation, but you can help them today with just a few clicks.
You may have seen the Academy Award-winning movie “Oppenheimer” about the development of the atomic bomb in 1945 or are certainly familiar with the story. But did you know that almost 80 years later, the United States has failed to help many of those who suffered and developed sometimes life-threatening diseases from nuclear weapons production and testing?
These people, who often came from underrepresented communities, were not informed of the risks associated with their work mining uranium or living downwind of nuclear testing sites. Now, the law passed to compensate them for the damage the U.S. nuclear program caused is at risk of expiring.
In 1990, the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) provided monetary compensation and access to specific healthcare for those impacted by U.S. nuclear testing and production. Two problems: RECA is set to expire one month from today on June 7, 2024 and residents of certain affected areas were previously excluded.
On March 7, 2024, the Senate approved a bill extending and expanding RECA. The measure, offered by Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) and Senator Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), would expand eligibility under RECA and, crucially, extend the services offered for six years. The overwhelmingly bipartisan vote was 69-30.
Now, it is up to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to schedule a vote on the Senate-passed bill. With only one month to go before RECA expires, the affected communities cannot afford to wait.
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