Colorado Delegation Unites To Defend Rocky Flats Workers’ Access To Health Care Benefits

Today, every member of the Colorado Congressional Delegation wrote to the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health to urge that they speedily act on the Special Exposure Cohort Petition of the former Rocky Flats workers. The Board is meeting in Westminster, Colorado this week to make a recommendation to the Secretary of Health and Human Services on whether the former workers should be granted ‘Special Exposure Cohort’ or ‘SEC’ status.

In their letter, the delegation members reminded the Advisory Board of the runaround the federal government has given these Cold War veterans by denying and delaying the benefits that Congress had already authorized for these workers to compensate for illnesses caused by exposure to radiation and other toxic substances at Rocky Flats.

The following Colorado delegation members provided individual quotes urging the Board to recommend ‘Special Exposure Cohort’ status to the former Rocky Flats workers:

“As a member of Congress who helped authorize the EEOICPA program, I know first-hand that Congress’s intent was to honor and care for our Cold War Veterans—our nation’s heros—who have become ill while working at Rocky Flats and other DOE facilities,” said Senator Allard. “This program is about people, science, and doing the right thing, not politics. The Rocky Flats SEC petition must be approved.” Read more at allard.senate.gov.