Radiation (Atomic Veterans)

Eligibility

• Participated in:

  • Test involving the atmospheric or underwater detonation of a nuclear device;

  • Cleanup of Enewetak Atoll, from January 1, 1977, through December 31, 1980;

  • Cleanup of the Air Force B-52 bomber carrying nuclear weapons off the coast of Palomares, Spain, from January 17, 1966, through March 31, 1967; or

  • Response to the fire onboard an Air Force B-52 bomber carrying nuclear weapons near Thule Air Force Base in Greenland from January 21, 1968, to September 25, 1968.

• Served in Hiroshima or Nagasaki, Japan, between August 6, 1945, and July 1, 1946;

• Former POWs interned in Japan, who were interned within 75 miles of the city limits of Hiroshima or within 150 miles of the city limits of Nagasaki;

• Service before January 1, 1974, on Amchitka Island, Alaska, if, during such service, the Veteran was exposed to ionizing radiation in the performance of duty related to the Long Shot, Milrow, or Cannikin underground nuclear tests;

• Service in which the servicemember was, as part of his or her official military duties, present during a total of at least 250 days before February 1, 1992, on the grounds of a gaseous diffusion plant located in Paducah, Kentucky, Portsmouth, Ohio, or the area identified as K25 at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. Who was monitored for each of those 250 days of such service through the use of dosimetry badges for exposure at the plant of the external parts of Veteran's body to radiation; or served for each of the 250 days of such service in a position that had exposures comparable to a job that is or was monitored through the use of dosimetry badges;

• Service in a capacity which, if performed as an employee of the Department of Energy, would qualify the individual for inclusion as a member of the Special Exposure Cohort (42 U.S.C. 7384l(14));

• Cleanup of Enewetak Atoll during the period beginning on January 1, 1977, and ending on December 31, 1980;

• Onsite participation in the response effort following the collision of a United States Air Force B-52 bomber and refueling plane that caused the release of four thermonuclear weapons in the vicinity of Palomares, Spain, during the period beginning January 17, 1966, and ending March 31, 1967; or

• Onsite participation in the response effort following the on-board fire and crash of a United States Air Force B-52 bomber that caused the release of four thermonuclear weapons in the vicinity of Thule Air Force Base, Greenland, during the period beginning January 21, 1968, and ending September 25, 1968.

IMPORTANT NOTES:

• Congress at this point has not recognized Veterans who served in support of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident in 2011 (Operation Tomadachi) as eligible for these presumptive conditions. However, those Veterans may join a Registry to be notified if this changes in the future.

• Other Veterans who may have been exposed to ionizing radiation through their MOS or Other methods are NOT recognized as having presumptive conditions. As such, if a Veteran believes they have a disability stemming from their service they should definitely still file a claim! It just won't be automatic.