Radiation Dose Reconstruction

Special Exposure Cohort (SEC)

The SEC was established by The Act and allows eligible claims to be compensated without the completion of a radiation dose reconstruction or determination of the probability of causation. To qualify for compensation under the SEC, a covered employee must have:

• at least one of the 22 "specified cancers" and
  
  
• worked for a specified period of time at one of the SEC work sites.

Congress also allowed for additional groups of employees (called classes of employees) to be added to the SEC. Groups of employees and work sites can be considered for addition to the SEC through a petition process. The petition process is run by NIOSH on behalf of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

SEC Petition Counselor

Josh Kinman is the NIOSH SEC Petition Counselor. NIOSH is responsible for accepting petitions to add classes of employees to the SEC under The Act. It is NIOSH's goal to help individuals understand the complete petition process as outlined in the SEC Rule (42 C.F.R. Part 83) [ PDF 132 KB (13 pages)]. We are aware that the SEC process can sometimes seem complex. Mr. Kinman works with petitioners in overcoming any frustrations or confusion that they may feel when submitting an SEC petition.

Mr. Kinman has been with NIOSH since May 2005 and worked in DCAS on the SEC Team since July 2006. He has been working as the SEC Petition Counselor since January 2011.

• SEC Petitions
  Mr. Kinman provides advice to those who wish to submit an SEC petition. Some of the things he assists the petitioner(s) in understanding include:
  
  
  • What information does an individual need to submit in SEC petition
    
    
  • How to submit an SEC petition
    
    
  • What happens to the petition once it is received by NIOSH
    
    
  • If the petition qualifies for further evaluation, what that means
    
    
  • If the petition does not qualify for further evaluation, what the petitioner can do
    
    
  • What happens when the petition is presented to the Advisory Board
    
    
  • What happens to the petition after the Advisory Board has talked about the petition
    
    
  • What happens when there is a recommendation that is sent to Congress
    
    
  • What happens when a class of employees is added to the SEC
    
    
    
• Outreach Meetings
  Mr. Kinman conducts outreach meetings and workshops for claimants, advocates, consultants, and the public in order to promote a better understanding of The Act and the SEC petitioning process.

You may contact Mr. Kinman by calling toll-free at 1-877-222-7570 or by email at dcas@cdc.gov. Information on filing an SEC petition can also be found on our How to Submit an SEC Petition Web page.

Top of Page

Ombudsman to NIOSH under EEOICPA

Denise Brock is a Consultant/Ombudsman to NIOSH under The Act. She helps individuals with a variety of issues that involve the SEC petitioning process and the dose reconstruction process. In her work as the Ombudsman to NIOSH, Ms. Brock has built a strong working relationship with the Department of Labor's Ombudsman's Office, District Offices, and National Office in an effort to help the claimant community.

Ms. Brock has been an outspoken and effective advocate for workers for many years. She is the daughter of former uranium workers from the Mallinckrodt Chemical Plant in St. Louis, Missouri. She was the Founder/Director of The United Nuclear Weapons Workers advocacy group. Ms. Brock has extensive experience and expertise in preparing and filing SEC petitions for classes of workers. In fact, the SEC petition Ms. Brock filed on behalf of workers at the Mallinckrodt Chemical Plant led to the first class of workers being added to the SEC. Ms. Brock was a strong force in organizing former workers and providing necessary information to the Advisory Board to push forward the SEC petition.

Ms. Brock has acted as not only a worker advocate but as a consultant to several law firms which helped The Act claimants. She has been recognized for her experience and was asked to testify before the Judiciary Committee on Immigration, Border Security and Claims, U.S. House of Representatives, Hearing on Implementation of The Act in an effort to bring forward ideas to help change the program to better serve the needs of the Workers.

How the Ombudsman to NIOSH under EEOICPA Helps Claimants:

• SEC Petitions
  Ms. Brock directly helps petitioners in gathering the materials, information, and documentation needed to file an SEC petition. She also helps petitioners in preparing and presenting comments to the Advisory Board. Ms. Brock also helps petitioners who may be having problems with their current petition.
  
  
• Dose Reconstruction
  In some cases when a claimant has problems with the dose reconstruction process, NIOSH will ask Ms. Brock to help the claimant. Claimants also contact her for help in reviewing their case, even if previously denied. Ms. Brock will review the entire case file, including the Department of Labor initial case file, the NIOSH dose reconstruction report, and the medical records. Ms. Brock has built a strong working relationship with the Department of Labor's Ombudsman's Office, District Offices, and National Office in an effort to help the claimant community.
  
  
• Outreach Meetings
  Ms. Brock conducts outreach meetings and workshops for claimants, advocates, consultants, and the public in order to promote a better understanding of The Act and the claims process.

You may contact Ms. Brock by calling toll-free at 1-888-272-7430 or by email at CKO7@cdc.gov.

Top of Page

Requests for SEC Outreach Meetings

NIOSH conducts SEC outreach meetings across the country. The goal of the SEC outreach meetings is to help individuals understand the SEC and the SEC petitioning process. These meetings are open to the public and last approximately half a day.

Please note that NIOSH will consider all requests for outreach meetings but may not be able to honor all requests. The decision to hold a meeting is based on the availability of NIOSH personnel, the number of requests received, and public interest in a geographical area. If your request is approved, then you will be contacted with further details.

If you are interested in having an SEC outreach meeting for your facility or location, please contact either Joshua Kinman or Denise Brock with your request. Mr. Joshua Kinman, the NIOSH SEC Petition Counselor, can be reached via email at dcas@cdc.gov or ocas@cdc.gov or toll-free at 1-877-222-7570. Ms. Denise Brock, the Ombudsman to NIOSH under EEOICPA, can be reached via email at CKO7@cdc.gov or toll-free at 1-888-272-7430.

Top of Page

Classes of Employees Currently Included in the SEC

A "class of employees" is defined in the SEC rule as a group of employees who work or worked at the same DOE facility or AWE facility, and for whom the availability of information and recorded data on radiation exposures is comparable with respect to the informational needs required to complete a radiation dose reconstruction as required under The Act.

The sites listed below currently have classes of employees in the SEC. Please click on the links below to view the specific details of the class definition and petition information.

Top of Page

List of Qualifying Cancers for the SEC

In addition to having worked for a specified period of time at one of the SEC work sites, to qualify for compensation, a covered employee must also have at least one of the following types of cancer:

• Bone cancer
  
  
• Renal cancers
  
  
• Leukemia (other than chronic lymphocytic leukemia) provided the onset of the disease was at least two years after first exposure
  
  
• Lung cancer (other than in-situ lung cancer that is discovered during or after a post-mortem exam)
  
  
• The following diseases provided onset was at least five years after first exposure:
  • Multiple myeloma
  • Lymphomas (other than Hodgkin's disease)
  • Primary cancer of the:
    • Bile ducts
    • Brain
    • Breast (female)
    • Breast (male)
    • Colon
    • Esophagus
    • Gall bladder
    • Liver (except if cirrhosis or hepatitis B is indicated)
    • Ovary
    • Pancreas
    • Pharynx
    • Salivary gland
    • Small intestine
    • Stomach
    • Thyroid
    • Urinary bladder

NOTE: The Department of Labor has published EEOICP Final Bulletins to address various EEIOCPA issues. There are some bulletins that address information for some of the cancers listed above and some of the bulletins address how SEC claims are processed.

DOL EEOICP Final Bulletins
External Link: http://www.dol.gov/owcp/energy/regs/compliance/
PolicyandProcedures/FinalBulletinshtml.htm

Top of Page

Petitions Currently Qualified for Evaluation

The petitioners and the Advisory Board will be notified when a petition meets the minimum requirements and NIOSH will proceed with an evaluation of the petition. The results of the evaluation will be given to the Advisory Board for review. During one of its regular meetings, the Advisory Board will evaluate the review, hear from the petitioners if they choose, and review any other information the Advisory Board determines is appropriate for the petition. The Advisory Board will then submit a recommendation (to accept or deny the petition) to the Secretary of HHS.

The Director of NIOSH will prepare a proposed decision for the Secretary of HHS, taking into consideration the NIOSH findings, and the Board's recommendation.

The final decision to add or deny a class to the SEC will be made by the Secretary of HHS, after considering information and recommendations provided by NIOSH, the Advisory Board, and from the review, if applicable. The Secretary will then submit any final decision to add a class to the SEC to Congress for review. If Congress takes no action that reverses or expedites the Secretary's decision, it will take effect 30 calendar days after the date the Secretary's report is submitted to Congress. The Secretary will provide a report to DOL and the petitioners containing the definition of the class and either the addition of the class to the SEC or the result of any action by Congress to reverse or expedite the decision.

The sites listed below have SEC petitions that have qualified for evaluation and are currently active in the SEC petitioning process. Please click on the links below to view the specific details of the class definition and petition information.

Petitions Not Added to the SEC

Listed below are sites representing SEC petitions that have completed the SEC petitioning process and were not added as an additional class to the SEC. Please click on the links below to view the specific details for why the class was not added to the SEC.

Submitting Comments on SEC Documents

NIOSH welcomes comments from interested stakeholders (claimants, organized labor groups, worker advocacy groups, etc.) on the SEC documents. Please include the name of the work site, the title of the document, or the Site Profile/Docket Number when submitting comments. All comments should be sent to NIOSH:

Top of Page