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John,
It was passed by the Senate back in March by a huge bipartisan majority of 69-30, but so far, the ever-dysfunctional House has failed to bring it to a vote.
It’s the expansion and renewal of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), initially passed into law in 1990, and now set to expire on June 10.
The current bill would extend RECA for six years, providing monetary compensation for people with certain cancers due to exposure to above-ground nuclear weapons testing and uranium mining from 1945 to 1964.
It would double the compensation for “downwinder” communities and include new communities not previously compensated in New Mexico, Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee, and Guam. Additional nuclear workers would also be compensated.
The bill is a real no-brainer. Radiation affects Republicans and Democrats alike, making it a truly bipartisan issue, as reflected in the ideological breadth of its congressional supporters. But it needs to come up for a vote in the House before it’s too late.
Send a message to your US House Representative today, demanding they pass the RECA expansion immediately and rush the compensation to those who need it as soon as possible.
Many who were exposed to radiation continue to face difficulties decades later, obtaining and paying for healthcare needed to address radiation-caused illnesses including leukemia, lymphomas, and 16 other specifically identified cancers.
Too many people were poisoned in order to build bombs, too many Native tribes disrupted, uranium miners, veterans and others suffering from life threatening, long term illnesses.
Now Congress has the power to alleviate this suffering, but we have not yet seen the House step up to the plate and deliver needed compensation to many of those who are affected. The clock is ticking and the time is now!
Let your Representative know: Delay is not acceptable. Help is needed now. Pass this important bipartisan legislation today.
Thank you for alerting Congress to the urgency of this issue.
- Amanda
Amanda Ford, Director
Democracy for America
Advocacy Fund
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