Attorney R. Hugh Stephens has represented victims of the radiation exposure resulting from atomic weapons testing and uranium mining since approximately 2010. The RECA fund, which ended in June 2024, was recently extended to December 31, 2028. The amended RECA Act of 2025 provides compensation to uranium workers, onsite participants, and downwinders.
RECA compensation for victims of atmospheric nuclear testing
As per the amended RECA of 2025, qualified victims of atmospheric nuclear testing who lived in affected areas receive $100,000 if they suffer from a specified illness. Claimants are considered to have been physically present if:
(I) They were physically present in an affected area for a period of at least 1 year during the period beginning on January 21, 1951, and ending on November 6, 1962;
(II) Were physically present in an affected area for the period beginning on June 30, 1962, and ending on July 31, 1962
(III) Were physically present in an affected area for a period of at least 1 year during the period beginning on September 24, 1944, and ending on November 6, 1962
(IV) They participated onsite in a test involving the atmospheric detonation of a nuclear device.
Affected areas refer to:
- All of New Mexico, Utah, and Idaho
- Certain counties in the State of Nevada, including White Pine, Nye, Lander, Lincoln, Eureka, and that portion of Clark County that consists of townships 13 through 16 at ranges 63 through 71
- Certain counties in the State of Arizona, including the counties of Coconino, Yavapai, Navajo, Apache, Gila, and Mohave
- New Mexico for claims by individuals who were physically present in an affected area for a period of at least 1 year during the period beginning on September 24, 1944, and ending on November 6, 1962.
In cases of leukemia, claimants must submit written documentation that such individuals developed leukemia 2 years after first exposure to fallout after the applicable period of physical presence as described above.
In cases relating to other specified illnesses and cancer, the individual must submit written medical documentation that he or she, after such period of physical presence or such participation (as the case may be), contracted a RECA specified disease listed below.
RECA Act of 2025 claims relating to uranium mining
Eligible miners include those employed in a uranium mine or uranium mill (including any individual who worked in the transport of uranium ore or vanadium-uranium ore from such mine or mill) located in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, Washington, Utah, Idaho, North Dakota, Oregon, and Texas at any time during the period beginning on January 1, 1942, and ending on December 31, 1990. During this period, the miner must have been exposed to work-related radiation for a year.
Other eligible claimants include millers, core drillers, and ore transporters as well as those involved in remediation efforts at such a uranium mine or mill, working for at least one year during the same period.
The term “core driller” means any individual employed to obtain cylindrical rock samples of uranium or vanadium through a borehole drilling machine for mining uranium or vanadium.
RECA act of 2025 allows the combination of work histories for individuals who worked in one or more of the qualified uranium mining positions above for a period of at least one year, any time during the period beginning on January 1, 1942, and ending on December 31, 1990
Qualified claimants must submit written medical documentation indicating that the individual developed lung cancer, nonmalignant respiratory disease, renal cancer, or any other chronic renal disease, including nephritis and kidney tubal tissue injury, after exposure.
RECA act of 2025 specified diseases
Specified disease’ means leukemia (including chronic lymphocytic leukemia), provided that initial exposure occurred after the age of 20 and the onset of the disease was at least 2 years after first exposure, and the following diseases, provided onset was at least 5 years after first exposure: multiple myeloma, lymphomas (other than Hodgkin’s disease), and primary cancer of the: thyroid, male or female breast, esophagus, stomach, pharynx, small intestine, pancreas, bile ducts, gall bladder, salivary gland, urinary bladder, brain, colon, ovary, liver (except if cirrhosis or hepatitis B is indicated), or lung.
Other diseases include nonmalignant respiratory disease or any other chronic renal disease, including nephritis and kidney tubal tissue injury after exposure to radiation through mining work as a miner, miller, core driller, and ore transporter.
Claimants suffering from these illnesses must prove physical presence (that they were physically present) in the affected areas for the specified periods, through contemporaneous written residential documentation and at least one additional employer-issued or government-issued document.
Claimants should also demonstrate that they contracted a specific disease after the period of physical presence by submission of contemporaneous written medical records or reports created by or at the direction of a licensed medical professional who provided contemporaneous medical care to the claimant.
An experienced RECA attorney can help you gather the required evidence faster, increasing your chances of receiving the compensation you deserve. Contact RECA lawyer Hugh Stephens on his cell phone (716) 208 3525 for assistance with filing a RECA claim.
Manhattan Project waste claims
The amended RECA Act of 2025 includes a new compensation program for victims of Manhattan Project nuclear waste in some states, including:
- Missouri: with area ZIP Codes 63031, 63033, 63034, 63042, 63045, 63074, 63114, 63135, 63138, 63044, 63140, 63145, 63147, 63102, 63304, 63134, 63043, 63341, 63368, and 63367.
- State of Tennessee: with the ZIP Codes of 37716, 37840, 37719, 37748, 37763, 37828, 37769, 37710, 37845, 37887, 37829, 37854, 37830, and 37831;
- State of Alaska: with the ZIP Codes of 99546 and 99547
- State of Kentucky: the ZIP Codes of 42001, 42003, and 42086.
A claimant must demonstrate that he or she was physically present in an affected area for at least two years after January 1, 1949, and contracted a specified disease after such period of physical presence, which the attorney general must certify.
Eligible living victims under the program will receive a compensation of $50,000 or total compensation for unreimbursed losses related to medical expenses. Medical expenses shall be compensated upon submission of contemporaneous written medical records, reports, or billing statements created by or at the direction of a licensed medical professional who provided contemporaneous medical care to the claimant, additional compensation in the amount of all documented out-of-pocket medical expenses incurred as a result of the specified disease suffered by that claimant, such as any medical expenses not covered under any program or insurance.
If an individual who qualifies for compensation is deceased at the time of submission of the claim, a surviving spouse may receive compensation of $25,000. If there is no surviving spouse, the surviving children, minor or otherwise, receive compensation in the total amount of $25,000, paid in equal shares to each surviving child.
Claimants must demonstrate their physical presence by submitting contemporaneous written residential documentation and at least one additional employer-issued or government-issued document or record that the claimant was physically present in an affected area for at least two years after January 1, 1949. A claimant shall be considered to have been physically present in an affected area if their primary residence or place of employment was in the affected area, or they attended school in the affected area.
Claimed illnesses must be demonstrated by submitting contemporaneous written medical records or reports created by or at the direction of a licensed medical professional who provided contemporaneous medical care to the claimant, that the claimant contracted a specified disease after such period of physical presence.
Let us help you file or resubmit a RECA claim
Are you or a loved one eligible for RECA benefits? Contact RECA attorney, Hugh Stephens, for a free claim evaluation. We only charge after your claim has been accepted and compensated. We can help you appeal if you feel that your claim was wrongfully denied.