The reconciliation law signed by President Donald Trump last week will provide greater compensation to more victims of radiation exposure from America’s nuclear weapons programs through 2028, putting an end to a yearslong lobbying effort.
The language in the fiscal 2025 law spearheaded by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., would expand coverage for more populations “downwind” of nuclear testing in the Southwest, as well as add compensation for individuals near uranium refining and disposal sites connected with the Manhattan Project.
The compensation program was established by the 1990 Radiation Exposure Compensation Act that provided financial help and medical screening to those downwind of nuclear testing sites, including people in states such as New Mexico and Arizona, as well as those exposed and sickened through uranium mining and exposure to waste.
