[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 30, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E58]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E58]]
  H.R. 134 WILL PROVIDE COMPENSATION FOR VETERANS EXPOSED TO RADIATION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. PATSY T. MINK

                               of hawaii

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 30, 2001

  Mrs. MINK of Hawaii. Mr. Speaker, on January 3, 2001, I introduced 
H.R. 134 to enable veterans exposed to radiation to be considered for 
medical assistance without regard to their particular level of 
exposure. The bill also expands the definition of radiation-risk 
activity to include veterans exposed to residual contamination.
  The destroyer U.S.S. Brush entered the waters of the Kwajalein Atoll 
in the Marshall Islands, an area contaminated with radiation from a 
large number of ships that had served as targets during two atmospheric 
nuclear tests. Crew members of the U.S.S. Brush ate fish and drank 
water distilled from the bay and crew members made trips to the target 
vessels to retrieve souvenirs. There was no dosimetry data collected on 
the U.S.S. Brush or at the Kwajalein Atoll to determine levels of 
exposure. No safety precautions were taken to prevent exposure and the 
crew was unaware of the dangers of ionizing radiation.
  Veterans who served on the U.S.S. Brush now suffer from a number of 
diseases that can be linked to radiation exposure. However, their 
disability claims have repeatedly been denied because they were not 
onsite participants in an atmospheric nuclear test and they were 
exposed to low levels of ionizing radiation.
  Congress has assisted veterans exposed to radiation in the past. In 
1988 Congress passed the Radiation-Exposed Veterans Compensation Act 
(Pub. L. 100-321). This law covered veterans which participated in a 
radiation risk activity. The law has three definitions of radiation 
risk activity. They include: Onsite participation in a nuclear 
detonation, occupation of Hiroshima or Nagasaki, Japan, by United 
States forces during the period beginning on August 6, 1945 and ending 
on July 1, 1946, and internment as a prisoner of war in Japan during 
WWII which resulted in the opportunity for exposure to ionizing 
radiation comparable to that of veterans occupying Hiroshima or 
Nagasaki. Clearly, this language does not cover those veterans exposed 
to radiation while in the service of their country.
  VA claims that lab tests on these veterans show that levels of 
residual radiation are not sufficient to sustain their claims for 
disability. However, these dose levels were based on lab tests, not 
data collected on sight at the Kwajalein Atoll. This is important 
because Congress has previously concluded that determining the level of 
exposure, unless collected onsite, is a futile exercise. Disability 
claims must be considered without regard to whether any particular 
level of radiation was measured for that individual especially when 
exposure is not denied.
  Congress must ensure that veterans exposed to ionizing radiation 
either on site or residually be eligible for benefits. Without H.R. 134 
radiation-exposed veterans do not have a realistic chance of proving 
their disability claim. I urge my colleagues to support our veterans by 
co-sponsoring H.R. 134.

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