They're Waiting For Them All To Die - Nuclear Radiation Exposure

The Republicans fought this bill (see below) tooth and nail, in an effort to protect their benefactors in the nuclear industry. They so degraded the original bill proposal, that by the time it passed, it was a mere shell of what was intended. The Democrats compromised under threat of filibuster (they had no choice, it was either that, or no bill at all), and thousands of people, were intentionally excluded at the Republicans' behest.

The bill was signed by Clinton, almost three years ago. Since then, the Bush regime has done everything it can to slow payment to workers, in an effort to choke a program they never wanted in the first place. Only 74 people, to date (in three years!!), have received a goddamn nickel, while tens of thousands of others are told they may have to wait up to seven years to see any settlement! Given the average age of these workers, and the illnesses they suffer, many, if not most, will be dead by the time they receive a settlement. Again, just as the Bush cabal intends. See article below.

Program aimed at helping workers exposed to chemicals faces backlog

URL: sfgate.com/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2003/10/01/national1806EDT0766.DTL

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People exposed to toxic chemicals while working at nuclear weapons plants may have to wait at least seven years before getting compensation for their illnesses from a federal program, congressional investigators say. The government has yet to start processing more than half the claims filed under the program, according to a preliminary report by the General Accounting Office that was obtained by the Associated Press.

The program, mandated by Congress three years ago, is supposed to help thousands of people who were exposed to toxins while working for Energy Department contractors. The most common illness is cancer.

Once medical experts determine that the illnesses are job-related, the department must help workers file claims under state worker compensation systems, according to the program. That is a reversal of a decades-old policy in which the department helped contractors fight claims. The report found that the program does not have enough doctors to review claims and that the department was far short of its goal of moving 100 cases per week through the first stages of the process by last August. The department is currently processing only 40 a week, the report said.

Assistant Energy Secretary Beverly Cook said the department needs more money in order to better comply. Cook said Wednesday that the agency has asked Congress if it can spend an extra $9 million this year on the compensation program, which has a $16 million budget.
The department's own statistics show that only 74 out of roughly 19,000 people who filed claims under the program were told by medical experts whether their jobs made them sick.
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The Bushies do so many bad things it's hard to know where to start. Too sad to know what to do with this, but it's worth giving the story some airtime.