Stephens and Stephens RECA and EEOICPA lawyers have been assisting claimants filing RECA claims for over ten years. We represent our claimants throughout the entire claims process, helping them obtain critical employment and medical evidence to file a successful claim. Medical evidence is essential when determining your eligibility for RECA benefits. The Department of Justice only accepts specific medical evidence from qualified physicians. If you meet the eligibility criteria, we are happy to assist you by covering the medical tests necessary to establish your claim. We cover these costs to ensure that you have the right medical evidence to establish a claim and get the compensation you deserve. The tests we pay for include chest X-rays to identify lung dysfunction from exposure to uranium dust and blood tests to assess and diagnose kidney dysfunction. We may also cover costs for your Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs) to diagnose respiratory illnesses related to your uranium employment.
Employment and Medical evidence for uranium worker claim
What tests do we cover for our uranium worker claimants?
Contact us for help filing a RECA claim if you think you meet the required employment criteria and suffer from a covered uranium worker illness. Those eligible for uranium worker compensation include people employed as miners, millers, ore transporters, core drillers or a remediation worker in mines and mills located in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, Washington, Utah, Idaho, North Dakota, Oregon, and Texas for at least one year from January 1, 1942, to December 31, 1990.
When filing a RECA claim, you must submit written medical documentation showing that you developed a covered illness after uranium employment. Diseases covered under the RECA for uranium workers include respiratory illnesses and kidney diseases.
- Respiratory illnesses-RECA offers compensation to eligible uranium workers with respiratory illnesses, including lung cancer and nonmalignant respiratory disease, such as fibrosis of the lung, pulmonary fibrosis, cor-pulmonale related to fibrosis of the lung, silicosis, and pneumoconiosis.
- Kidney illnesses- Eligible uranium workers suffering from kidney illnesses are also compensated under the RECA. These include those suffering from renal cancer and chronic renal diseases, such as nephritis and kidney tubular tissue injury.
If you suffer from any of these illnesses and lack the appropriate medical evidence, we can cover costs for medical tests to establish your illness. Some of the tests Stephens and Stephens LLP cover for their uranium worker claimants include:
Chest x-rays
Contact us if you have a respiratory illness that you think is related to your covered uranium worker employment. We will help you gather the required evidence to file a successful claim. We cover X-ray costs if necessary to establish a diagnosis of a covered non-malignant respiratory illness. For a chest x-ray to be accepted under the RECA, “it must be administered in accordance with standard techniques and the interpretive reports of a maximum of two National Institute of Occupational Health and Safety certified ‘B’ readers classifying the existence of the nonmalignant respiratory disease of category 1/0 or higher according to a 1989 report of the International Labor Office (known as the ‘ILO’), or subsequent revisions.”
Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs)
RECA accepts Pulmonary Function Tests or lung function tests indicating restrictive lung function, as defined by the American Thoracic Society. If you have a respiratory illness that started during or after your uranium employment, we can pay for a Pulmonary Function Test to determine if you suffer from a covered lung disease.
PFTs such as spirometry, lung function tests, lung diffusion capacity tests, and cardiopulmonary exercise tests are used to diagnose certain lung illnesses, like COPD and pulmonary fibrosis. These tests are used to determine if your lung function is within normal range by comparing your measured test results to predicted results generated by reference equations. They are also used to monitor diagnosed lung disease, evaluate the patient’s exposure to environmental or work-related pollutants, and guide and monitor treatment.
Kidney function tests
Have you been diagnosed with a kidney disease? RECA compensates kidney illnesses for eligible uranium workers upon the submission of kidney function tests indicating kidney dysfunction or disease. We assist our eligible claimants in getting the required kidney function tests to determine if they suffer from a covered illness. Where necessary, we cover costs for urine and blood tests or glomerular filtration rate tests to establish your diagnosis and help you file a claim.
These tests assess the working condition of your kidneys by measuring the types and levels of waste products, including urea and creatinine, and electrolytes like sodium and potassium. Blood tests, specifically the glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), can diagnose kidney disease in people with and without symptoms. Cases involving kidney cancer may require further tests, such as biopsy.
Contact our RECA lawyer today for a free case evaluation
Contact our RECA attorney, Hugh Stephens, on his cell phone at (716) 208 3525 if you think you have an illness resulting from uranium employment. In addition to helping you obtain medical records, we will also assist you in gathering employment evidence to file a successful claim within the shortest time possible. We will help you appeal if you feel that your claim was wrongfully denied. You may also be eligible for survivor benefits if your loved one died of an illness related to uranium mining employment.