Region 5 News Release: 14-928-CHI
May 22, 2014
Contact: Jesse Lawder Ann Mangold
Phone: 202-693-4659 202-693-4679
Email: Lawder.Jesse@dol.gov Mangold.Ann.R@dol.gov

US Department of Labor notifies former Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply
Co. employees of inclusion in EEOICPA Special Exposure Cohort

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor is notifying all former employees of Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. about a new class of employees added to the Special Exposure Cohort of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act. The EEOICPA provides compensation and medical benefits to workers who became ill because of working in the nuclear weapons industry. Survivors of qualified workers also may be entitled to benefits.

A worker who is included in a designated Special Exposure Cohort class of employees, and who is diagnosed with one of 22 specified cancers, may receive a presumption of causation under the EEOICPA. On March 27, 2014, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services designated the following class of employees as an addition to the Special Exposure Cohort: all atomic weapons employees who worked for Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. at the covered facility in Fort Wayne, Ind., from March 1, 1943, through July 31, 1948, for at least 250 workdays, occurring either solely under this employment or in combination with workdays within other classes of employees in the Special Exposure Cohort. This designation became effective on April 26, 2014. The department's role is to adjudicate these claims based on the new Special Exposure Cohort class definition, as determined and introduced by HHS.

To date, $7.7 million in EEOICPA compensation and medical benefits has been paid to 109 Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. claimants, while more than $10.4 billion has been paid nationwide. For additional information about the new Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. Special Exposure Cohort, or to schedule an appointment for claim-filing assistance, contact the department's Paducah Resource Center toll-free at 866-534-0599.

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