today said that it’s time NIOSH admit that they can’t reconstruct dosages with sufficient accuracy, and they should provide compensation on the presumption that the hazardous work performed by the former IAAP workers caused their cancer. . . It's because of you that we are here. Hard-working employees who went to work day in and day out. Workers who did what they were told without questioning what they were handling or exposed to. Without questioning what effect it would have on them and their families. You did this work because you were asked, and you did it because we were at war. And in many cases, these workers made the ultimate sacrifice as a result. . . Today, claimants are being asked to trust compensation decisions by the same government that placed them in harm’s way. The same government that failed to protect them or fully inform them of the dangerous nature of their work. . . My office was verbally advised at 5 o’clock on this past Friday that there is a legal opinion being developed – which I have not seen – that could have a significant impact on the future of the IAAP petition. This opinion, from the Department of Justice, effectively prohibits the Secretary of Health and Human Services from designating a cohort based on the lack of transparency. It’s my understanding that the Justice Department believes that although the data is classified and unavailable to the claimants, dose reconstructions can still be done. And therefore, a Special Exposure Cohort can not be established. This interpretation raises serious questions about a claimants right to due process. It’s this type of underhanded tactic that leads me to believe that there is an effort by some in Washington to confound and discredit the process that we are engaged in today. I sincerely hope that it isn’t an outright effort to prevent deserving workers from receiving compensation. Regardless, I intend to get to the bottom of it. . .” Advisory Board on Radiation and Workers Health, April 29, 2005. * * * * * * * * * *
