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Employees' Benefits
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2003-04-01
2003-04-01
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CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION UNDER THE WAR HAZARDS COMPENSATION ACT, AS AMENDED
61

PART 61
Employees' Benefits
OFFICE OF WORKERS'COMPENSATION PROGRAMS,DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
COMPENSATION FOR INJURY, DISABILITY, DEATH, OR ENEMY DETENTION OF EMPLOYEES OF CONTRACTORS WITH THE UNITED STATES
Pt. 61

PART 61—CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION UNDER THE WAR HAZARDS COMPENSATION ACT, AS AMENDED

Subpart A—General Provisions
Sec.
61.1
Statutory provisions.
61.2
Administration of the Act and this chapter.
61.3
Purpose and scope of this part.
61.4
Definitions and use of terms.

Subpart B—Reimbursement of Carriers
61.100
General reimbursement provisions.
61.101
Filing a request for reimbursement.
61.102
Disposition of reimbursement requests.
61.103
Examination of records of carrier.
61.104
Reimbursement of claims expense.
61.105
Direct payment of benefits.

Subpart C—Compensation for Injury, Disability or Death
61.200
Entitlement to benefits.
61.201
Filing of notice and claim.
61.202
Time limitations for filing notice and claim.
61.203
Limitations on and deductions from benefits.
61.204
Furnishing of medical treatment.
61.205
Burial expense.
61.206
Reports by employees and dependents.

Subpart D—Detention Benefits
61.300
Payment of detention benefits.
61.301
Filing a claim for detention benefits.
61.302
Time limitations for filing a claim for detention benefits.
61.303
Determination of detention status.
61.304
Limitations on and deductions from detention benefits.
61.305
Responsibilities of dependents receiving detention benefits.
61.306
Transportation of persons released from detention and return of employees.
61.307
Transportation of recovered bodies of missing persons.

Subpart E—Miscellaneous Provisions
61.400
Custody of records relating to claims under the War Hazards Compensation Act.
61.401
Confidentiality of records.
61.402
Protection, release, inspection and copying of records.
61.403
Approval of claims for legal and other services.
61.404
Assignments; creditors.

Authority:
1950 Reorg. Plan No. 19, sec. 1, 3 CFR, 1949-1953 Comp., p. 1010, 64 Stat. 1271; 5 U.S.C. 8145, 8149; 42 U.S.C. 1704, 1706; Secretary's Order 7-87, 52 FR 48466; Employment Standards Order 78-1, 43 FR 51469.

Source:
53 FR 3679, Feb. 8, 1988, unless otherwise noted.

Subpart A—General Provisions
§ 61.1
Statutory provisions
(a) The War Hazards Compensation Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) provides for reimbursement of workers' compensation benefits paid under the Defense Base Act (42 U.S.C. 1651 et seq.), or under other workers' compensation laws as described in § 61.100(a), for injury or death causally related to a war-risk hazard.
(b) If no benefits are payable under the Defense Base Act or other applicable workers' compensation law, compensation is paid to the employee or survivors for the war-risk injury or death of—
(1) Any person subject to workers' compensation coverage under the Defense Base Act;
(2) Any person engaged by the United States under a contract for his or her personal services outside the continental United States;
(3) Any person subject to workers' compensation coverage under the Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act (5 U.S.C. 8171 et seq.);
(4) Any person engaged for personal services outside the continental United States under a contract approved and financed by the United States under the Mutual Security Act of 1954, as amended (other than title II of chapter II unless the Secretary of Labor, upon the recommendation of the head of any department or other agency of the U.S. Government, determines a contract financed under a successor provision of any successor Act should be covered by this subchapter), except that in cases where the United States is not a formal party to contracts approved and financed under the Mutual Security Act of 1954, as amended, the Secretary, upon the recommendation of the head of any department or agency of the United States, may waive the application of the Act; or
(5) Any person engaged for personal services outside the continental United States by an American employer providing welfare or similar services for the benefit of the Armed Forces under appropriate authorization by the Secretary of Defense.
(c) The Act also provides for payment of detention benefits to an employee specified in paragraph (a) of this section who—
(1) If found to be missing from his or her place of employment under circumstances supporting a reasonable inference that the absence is due to the belligerent action of a hostile force or person;
(2) Is known to have been taken by a hostile force or person as a prisoner or hostage; or
(3) Is not returned to his or her home or to the place of employment due to the failure of the United States or its contractor to furnish transportation.
§ 61.2
Administration of the Act and this chapter.
(a) Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1706, Secretary of Labor's Order 6-84, (49 FR 32473), and Employment Standards Order 78-1, (43 FR 51469), the responsibility for administration of the Act has been delegated to the Director, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs.
(b) In administering the provisions of the Act, the Director may enter into agreements or cooperative working arrangements with other agencies of the United States or of any State (including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands) or political subdivisions thereof, and with other public agencies and private persons, agencies, or institutions within and outside the United States. The Director may also contract with insurance carriers for the use of their service facilities to process claims filed under the Act
§ 61.3
Purpose and scope of this part.
(a) This part 61 sets forth the rules applicable to the filing, processing, and payment of claims for reimbursement and workers' compensation benefits under the provisions of the War Hazards Compensation Act, as amended. The provisions of this part are intended to afford guidance and assistance to any person, insurance carrier, self-insured employer, or compensation fund seeking benefits under the Act, as well as to personnel within the Department of Labor who administer the Act.
(b) Subpart A describes the statutory and administrative framework within which claims under the Act are processed, contains a statement of purpose and scope, and defines terms used in the administration of the Act.
(c) Subpart B describes the procedure by which an insurance carrier, self-insured employer, or compensation fund shall file a claim for reimbursement under section 104 of the Act, and describes the procedures for processing a claim for reimbursement and transferring a case for direct payment by the Department of Labor.
(d) Subpart C contains the rules governing the filing and processing of a claim for injury, disability or death benefits under section 101(a) of the Act.
(e) Subpart D contains provisions relating to claims for detention benefits under section 101(b) of the Act.
(f) Subpart E contains miscellaneous provisions concerning disclosure of program information, approval of claims for legal services, and assignment of claim.
§ 61.4
Definitions and use of terms.
For the purpose of this part—
(a) The Act means the War Hazards Compensation Act, 42 U.S.C. 1701 et seq., as amended.
(b) Office or OWCP means the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Employment Standards Administration, United States Department of Labor.
(c) Contractor with the United States includes any contractor, subcontractor or subordinate subcontractor.
(d) Carrier means any payer of benefits for which reimbursement is requested under the Act, and includes insurance carriers, self-insured employers and compensation funds.
(e) War-risk hazard means any hazard arising during a war in which the United States is engaged; during an armed conflict in which the United States is engaged, whether or not war has been declared; or during a war or armed conflict between military forces of any origin, occurring within any country in which a person covered by the Act is serving; from—
(1) The discharge of any missile (including liquids and gas) or the use of any weapon, explosive, or other noxious thing by a hostile force or person or in combating an attack or an imagined attack by a hostile force or person;
(2) Action of a hostile force or person, including rebellion or insurrection against the United States or any of its allies;
(3) The discharge or explosion of munitions intended for use in connection with a war or armed conflict with a hostile force or person (except with respect to employees of a manufacturer, processor, or transporter of munitions during the manufacture, processing, or transporting of munitions, or while stored on the premises of the manufacturer, processor, or transporter);
(4) The collision of vessels in convoy or the operation of vessels or aircraft without running lights or without other customary peacetime aids to navigation; or
(5) The operation of vessels or aircraft in a zone of hostilities or engaged in war activities.
(f) Hostile force or person means any nation, any subject of a foreign nation, or any other person serving a foreign nation—
(1) Engaged in a war against the United States or any of its allies;
(2) Engaged in armed conflict, whether or not war has been declared, against the United States or any of its allies; or
(3) Engaged in a war or armed conflict between military forces of any origin in any country in which a person covered by the Act is serving.
(g) Allies means any nation with which the United States is engaged in a common military effort or with which the United States has entered into a common defensive military alliance.
(h) War activities includes activities directly relating to military operations.
(i) Continental United States means the States and the District of Columbia.
(j) Injury means injury resulting from a war-risk hazard, as defined in this section, whether or not such injury occurred in the course of the person's employment, and includes any disease proximately resulting from a war-risk hazard.
(k) Death means death resulting from an injury, as defined in this section.
(l) The terms compensation, physician, and medical, surgical, and hospital services and supplies when used in subparts D and E are construed and applied as defined in the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq.).
(m) The terms disability, wages, child, grandchild, brother, sister, parent, widow, widower, student, adoption or adopted are construed and applied as defined in the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act, as amended (35 U.S.C. 901 et seq.).

Subpart B—Reimbursement of Carriers
§ 61.100
General reimbursement provisions.
(a) The Office shall reimburse any carrier that pays benefits under the Defense Base Act or other applicable workers' compensation law due to the injury, disability or death of any person specified in § 61.1(a), if the injury or death for which the benefits are paid arose from a war-risk hazard. The amount to be reimbursed includes disability and death payments, funeral and burial expenses, medical expenses, and the reasonable and necessary claims expense incurred in processing the request.
(b) The Office shall not provide reimbursement in any case in which an additional premium for war-risk hazard was charged, or in which the carrier has been reimbursed, paid, or compensated for the loss for which reimbursement is requested.
(c) Reimbursement under this section with respect to benefits shall be limited to the amounts which will discharge the liability of the carrier under the applicable workers' compensation law.
§ 61.101
Filing a request for reimbursement.
(a) A carrier or employer may file a request for reimbursement. The request shall be submitted to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Branch of Special Claims, P.O. Box 37117, Washington, DC 20013-7117;
(b) Each request for reimbursement shall include documentation itemizing the payments for which reimbursement is claimed. The documentation shall be sufficient to establish the purpose of the payment, the name of the payee, the date(s) for which payment was made, and the amount of the payment. Copies of any medical reports and bills related to medical examination or treatment for which reimbursement is claimed shall also be submitted. If the carrier cannot provide copies of the payment drafts or receipts, the Office may accept a certified listing of payments which includes payee name, description of services rendered, date of services rendered, amount paid, date paid check or draft number, and signature of certifier.
(c) When filing an initial request for reimbursement under the Act, the carrier shall submit copies of all available documents related to the workers' compensation case, including—
(1) Notice and claim forms;
(2) Statements of the employee or employer;
(3) Medical reports;
(4) Compensation orders; and
(5) Proof of liability (e.g., insurance policy or other documentation).
§ 61.102
Disposition of reimbursement requests.
(a) If the Office finds that insufficient or inadequate information has been submitted with the claim, the carrier shall be asked to submit further information. Failure to supply the requested information may result in disallowance of items not adequately supported as properly reimbursable.
(b) The Office shall not withhold payment of an approved part of a reimbursement request because of denial of another part of the reimbursement request.
(c) The Office shall regard awards, decisions and approved settlement agreements under the Defense Base Act or other applicable workers' compensation law, that have become final, as establishing prima facie, the right of the beneficiary to the payment awarded or provided for.
(d) The Office shall advise the carrier of the amount approved for reimbursement. If the reimbursement request has been denied in whole or in part, the Office shall provide the carrier an explanation of the action taken and the reasons for the action. A carrier within the United States may file objections with the Associate Director for Federal Employees' Compensation to the disallowance or reduction of a claim within 60 days of the Office's decision. A carrier outside the United States has six months within which to file objections with the Associate Director. The Office may consider objections filed beyond the time limits under unusual circumstances or when reasonable cause has been shown for the delay. A determination by the Office is final.
(e) In determining whether a claim is reimbursable, the Office shall hold the carrier to the same degree of care and prudence as any individual or corporation in the protection of its interests or the handling of its affairs would be expected to exercise under similar circumstances. A part or an item of a claim may be disapproved if the Office finds that the carrier—
(1) Failed to take advantage of any right accruing by assignment or subrogation (except against the United States, directly or indirectly, its employees, or members of its armed forces) due to the liability of a third party, unless the financial condition of the third party or the facts and circumstances surrounding the liability justify the failure;
(2) Failed to take reasonable measures to contest, reduce, or terminate its liability by appropriate available procedure under workers' compensation law or otherwise; or
(3) Failed to make reasonable and adequate investigation or injury as to the right of any person to any benefit or payment; or
(4) Failed to avoid augmentation of liability by reason of delay in recognizing or discharging a compensation claimant's right to benefits.
§ 61.103
Examination of records of carrier.
Whenever it is deemed necessary, the Office may request submission of case records or may inspect the records and accounts of a carrier for the purpose of verifying any allegation, fact or payment stated in the claim. The carrier shall furnish the records and permit or authorize their inspection as requested. The right of inspection shall also relate to records and data necessary for the determination of whether any premium or other charge was made with respect to the reimbursement claimed.
§ 61.104
Reimbursement of claims expense.
(a) A carrier may claim reimbursement for reasonable and necessary claims expense incurred in connection with a case for which reimbursement is claimed under the Act. Reimbursement may be claimed for allocated and unallocated claims expense.
(b) The term “allocated claims expense” includes payments made for reasonable attorneys' fees, court and litigation costs, expenses of witnesses and expert testimony, examinations, autopsies and other items of expense that were reasonably incurred in determining liability under the Defense Base Act or other workers' compensation law. Allocated claims expense must be itemized and documented as described in § 61.101.
(c) The term “unallocated claims expense” means costs that are incurred in processing a claim, but cannot be specifically itemized or documented. A carrier may receive reimbursement of unallocated claims expense in an amount of to 15% of the sum of the reimbursable payments made under the Defense Base Act or other workers' compensation law. If this method of computing unallocated claims expense would not result in reimbursement of reasonable and necessary claims expense, the Office may, in its discretion, determine an amount that fairly represents the expenses incurred.
(d) The Office shall not consider as a claims expense any general administrative costs, general office maintenance costs, rent, insurance, taxes, or other similar general expenses. Nor shall expenses incurred in establishing or documenting entitlement to reimbursement under the Act be considered.
§ 61.105
Direct payment of benefits.
(a) The Office may pay benefits, as they accrue, directly to any entitled beneficiary in lieu of reimbursement of a carrier.
(b) The Office will not accept a case for direct payment until the right of the person or persons entitled to benefits has been established and the Office finds that the carrier would be entitled to reimbursement for continuing benefits.
(c) The Office will not accept a case for direct payment until the rate of compensation or benefit and the period of payment have become relatively fixed and known. The Office may accept a case for direct payment before this condition has been satisfied, if the Office determines that direct payment is advisable due to the circumstances in that particular case.
(d) In cases transferred to the Office for direct payment, medical care for the effects of a war-risk injury may be furnished in a manner consistent with the regulations governing the furnishing of medical care under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 8101, et seq.).
(e) The transfer of a case to the Office for direct payment does not affect the hearing or adjudicatory rights of a beneficiary or carrier as established under the Defense Base Act or other applicable workers' compensation law.
(f) The Office may retransfer any case to a carrier either for the purpose of completion of adjudicatory processes or for continuation of payment of benefits.

Subpart C—Compensation for Injury, Disability or Death
§ 61.200
Entitlement to benefits.
(a) Compensation under section 101(a) of the Act is payable for injury or death due to a war-risk hazard of an employee listed in § 61.1(a), whether or not the person was engaged in the course of his or her employment at the time of the injury.
(b) Compensation under this subpart is paid under the provisions of the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq.), except that the determination of beneficiaries and the computation of compensation are made in accordance with sections 6, 8, 9, and 10 of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (33 U.S.C. 901 et seq.).
(c) The Office may not approve a claim for compensation if any of the following conditions are met:
(1) The employee resides at or in the vicinity of the place of employment, does not live there solely due to the exigencies of the employment, and is injured outside the course of the employment.
(2) The claim is filed due to the injury or death of a prisoner of war detained or utilized by the United States.
(3) The person seeking benefits recovers or receives workers' compensation benefits from any other source for the same injury or death.
(4) The person seeking benefits is a national of a foreign country and is entitled to compensation benefits from that or any other foreign country on account of the same injury or death.
(5) The employee is convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of any subversive act against the United States or any of its allies.
§ 61.201
Filing of notice and claim.
An employee or his or her survivors may file a claim under section 101(a) of the Act only after a determination has been made that no benefits are payable under the Defense Base Act administered by the Office's Division of Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation, Notice and claim may be filed on standard Longshore or Federal Employees' Compensation Act forms. The claimant shall submit notice and claim, along with any supporting documentation, to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Branch of Special Claims, P.O. Box 37117, Washington, DC 20013-7117.
§ 61.202
Time limitations for filing notice and claim.
The time limitation provisions found in 5 U.S.C. 8119 apply to the filing of claims under section 101(a) of the War Hazards Compensation Act. The Office may waive the time limitations if it finds that circumstances beyond the claimant's control prevented the filing of a timely claim.
§ 61.203
Limitations on and deductions from benefits.
(a) Compensation payable for injury, disability or death may not exceed the maximum limitations specified in section 6(b) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act, as amended.
(b) In determining benefits for disability or death, the Office shall not apply the minimum limits found in sections 6(b) and 9(e) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act.
(c) Compensation for death or permanent disability payable to persons who are not citizens of the United States and who are not residents of the United States or Canada is in the same amount as provided for residents, except that dependents in a foreign country are limited to the employee's spouse and children, or if there be no spouse or children, to the employee's father or mother whom the employee supported, either wholly or in part, for the period of one year immediately prior to the date of the injury. The Office may discharge its liability for all future payments of compensation to a noncitizen/nonresident by paying a limp sum representing one-half the commuted value of all future compensation as determined by the Office.
(d) If any employee or beneficiary receives or claims wages, payments in lieu of wages, or insurance benefits for disability or loss of life (other than workers' compensation benefits), and the cost of these payments is provided in whole or in part by the United States, the Office shall credit the amount of the benefits against any payments to which the person is entitled under the Act. The Office shall apply credit only where the wages, payments, or benefits received are items for which the contractor is entitled to reimbursement from the United States, or where they are otherwise reimbursable by the United States.
(e) If an employee who is receiving workers' compensation benefits on account of a prior accident or disease sustains an injury compensable under the Act, the employee is not entitled to any benefits under the Act during the period covered by other workers' compensation benefits unless the injury from a war-risk hazard increases the employee's disability. If the war-risk injury increases the disability, compensation under the Act is payable only for the amount of the increase in disability. This provision is applicable only to disability resulting jointly from two unrelated causes, namely, (1) prior industrial accident or disease, and (2) injury from a war-risk hazard.
(f) Compensation for disability under this subchapter, with the exception of allowances for scheduled losses of members or functions of the body, may not be paid for the same period of time during which benefits for detention under this subchapter are paid or accrued.
§ 61.204
Furnishing of medical treatment.
All medical services, appliances, drugs and supplies which in the opinion of the Office are necessary for the treatment of an injury coming within the purview of section 101(a) of the Act shall be furnished to the same extent, and wherever practicable in the same manner and under the same regulations, as are prescribed for the furnishing of medical treatment under the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq.).
§ 61.205
Burial expense.
(a) When the death of a person listed in § 61.1(a) results from an injury caused by a war-risk hazard, the Office shall pay reasonable burial expenses up to the amount specified in section 9 of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act. If any part of the burial expense has been paid by any other agency of the United States, or by any person under obligation to discharge burial expenses, the amount so paid shall be deducted from the burial expense payable by the Office. Payment will be made directly (1) to the undertaker, (2) to the estate of the deceased if the estate is obligated to make payment, or (3) to any person who has paid such burial expenses and is entitled to such reimbursement.
(b) If the employee's home is within the United States and death occurs away from the employee's home or outside the United States, the Office may pay an additional sum for transporting the remains to the home.
§ 61.206
Reports by employees and dependents.
The Office may require a claimant to submit reports of facts materially affecting the claimant's entitlement to compensation under the Act. These may include reports of recurrence or termination of disability, of employment and earnings, or of a change in the marital or dependency status of a beneficiary.

Subpart D—Detention Benefits
§ 61.300
Payment of detention benefits.
(a) The Office shall pay detention benefits to any person listed in § 61.1(a) who is detained by a hostile force or person, or who is not returned to his or her home or to the place of employment by reason of the failure of the United States or its contractor to furnish transportation. Benefits are payable for periods of absence on and subsequent to January 1, 1942, regardless of whether the employee was actually engaged in the course of his or her employment at the time of capture or disappearance.
(b) For the purposes of paying benefits for detention, the employee is considered as totally disabled until the time that the employee is returned to his or her home, to the place of employment, or to the jurisdiction of the United States. The Office shall credit the compensation benefits to the employee's account, to be paid to the employee for the period of the absence or until the employee's death is in fact established or can be legally presumed to have occurred. A part of the compensation accruing to the employee may be disbursed during the period of absence to the employee's dependents.
(c) During the period of absence of any employee detained by a hostile force or person, detention benefits shall be credited to the employee's account at one hundred percent of his or her average weekly wages. The average weekly wages may not exceed the average weekly wages paid to civilian employees of the United States performing the same or most similar employment in that geographic area. If there are eligible dependents, the Office may pay to these dependents seventy percent of the credited benefits.
(d) The Office may not pay detention benefits under any of the following conditions:
(1) The employee resides at or in the vicinity of the place of employment, does not live there solely due to the exigencies of the employment, and is detained under circumstances outside the course of the employment.
(2) The person detained is a prisoner of war detained or utilized by the United States.
(3) Workers' compensation benefits from any other source or other payments from the United States are paid for the same period of absence or detention.
(4) The person seeking detention benefits is a national of a foreign country and is entitled to compensation benefits from that or any other foreign country on account of the same absence or detention.
(5) The employee has been convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction of any subversive act against the United States or any of its allies.
§ 61.301
Filing a claim for detention benefits.
(a) A claim for detention benefits shall contain the following information: Name, address, and occupation of the missing employee; name, address and relation to the employee of any dependent making claim; name and address of the employer; contract number under which employed; date, place and circumstances of capture or detention; date, place and circumstances of release (if applicable). The employer shall provide information about the circumstances of the detention and the employee's payrate at the time of capture. Dependents making claim for detention benefits may be required to submit all evidence available to them concerning the employment status of the missing person and the circumstances surrounding his or her absence.
(b) A claim filed by a dependent or by the employee upon his or her release should be sent with any supporting documentation to the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Branch of Special Claims, P.O. Box 37117, Washington, DC 20013-7117.
§ 61.302
Time limitations for filing a claim for detention benefits.
The time limitation provisions found in the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. 8101 et seq.) apply to the filing of claims for detention benefits. The Office may waive the time limitations if it finds that circumstances beyond the claimant's control prevented the filing of a timely claim.
§ 61.303
Determination of detention status.
A determination that an employee has been detained by a hostile force or person may be made on the basis that the employee has disappeared under circumstances that make detention appear probable. In making the determination, the Office will consider the information and the conclusion of the Department or agency of the United States having knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the absence of the employee as prima facie evidence of the employee's status. The presumptive status of total disability of the missing person shall continue during the period of the absence, or until death is in fact established or can be legally presumed to have occurred.
§ 61.304
Limitations on and deductions from detention benefits.
(a) In determining benefits for detention, the Office shall not apply the minimum limits found in sections 6(b) and 9(e) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act.
(b) If any employee or dependent receives or claims wages, payments in lieu of wages, or insurance benefits for the period of detention, and the cost of the wages, payments or benefits is provided in whole or in part by the United States, the Office shall credit the amount of the benefits against any detention payments to which the person is entitled under the Act. The Office shall apply credit only where the wages, payments, or benefits received are items for which the contractor is entitled to reimbursement from the United States, or where they are otherwise reimbursable by the United States.
§ 61.305
Responsibilities of dependents receiving detention benefits.
A dependent having knowledge of a change of status of a missing employee shall promptly inform the Office of the change. The Office must be advised immediately by the dependent if the employee is returned home or to the place of his or her employment, or is able to be returned to the jurisdiction of the United States.
§ 61.306
Transportation of persons released from detention and return of employees.
(a) The Office may furnish the cost of transporting an employee from the point of the employee's release from detention to his or her home, the place of employment, or other place within the jurisdiction of the United States. The Office shall not pay for transportation if the employee is furnished the transportation under any agreement with his or her employer or under any other provision of law.
(b) The Office may furnish the cost of transportation under circumstances not involving detention, if the furnishing of transportation is an obligation of the United States or its contractor, and the United States or its contractor fails to return the employee to his or her home or to the place of employment.
§ 61.307
Transportation of recovered bodies of missing persons.
If an employee dies while in detention and the body is later recovered, the Office may provide the cost of transporting the body to the home of the deceased or to any place designated by the employee's next of kin, near relative, or legal representative.

Subpart E—Miscellaneous Provisions
§ 61.400
Custody of records relating to claims under the War Hazards Compensation Act.
All records, medical and other reports, statements of witnesses and other papers filed with the Office with respect to the disability, death, or detention of any person coming within the purview of the Act, are the official records of the Office and are not records of the agency, establishment, Government department, employer, or individual making or having the care or use of such records.
§ 61.401
Confidentiality of records.
Records of the Office pertaining to injury, death, or detention are confidential, and are exempt from disclosure to the public under section 552(b)(6) of title 5, U.S. Code. No official or employee of the United States who has investigated or secured statements from witnesses and others pertaining to any case within the purview of the Act, or any person having the care or use of such records, shall disclose information from or pertaining to such records to any person, except in accordance with applicable regulations (see 29 CFR part 70a).
§ 61.402
Protection, release, inspection and copying of records.
The protection, release, inspection and copying of the records shall be accomplished in accordance with the rules, guidelines and provisions contained in 29 CFR parts 70 and 70a and the annual notice of systems of records and routine uses as published in the Federal Register.
§ 61.403
Approval of claims for legal and other services.
(a) No claim for legal services or for any other services rendered in respect to a claim or award for compensation under the Act to or on account of any person shall be valid unless approved by the Office. Any such claim approved by the Office shall, in the manner and to the extent fixed by the Office, be paid out of the compensation payable to the claimant.
(b) The Office shall not recognize a contract for a stipulated fee or for a fee on a contingent basis. No fee for services shall be approved except upon application supported by a sufficient statement of the extent and character of the necessary work done on behalf of the claimant. Except where the claimant was advised that the representation would be rendered on a gratuitous basis, the fee approved shall be reasonably commensurate with the actual necessary work performed by the representative, and with due regard to the capacity in which the representative appeared, the amount of compensation involved, and the circumstances of the claimant.
§ 61.404
Assignments; creditors.
The right of any person to benefits under the Act is not transferable of assignable at law or in equity except to the United States, and none of the moneys paid or payable (except money paid as reimbursement for funeral expenses), or rights existing under the Act are subject to execution, levy, attachment, garnishment, or other legal process or to the operation of any bankruptcy or insolvency law.