Legislative Update
If you’ve flipped on the news in recent weeks, you’ve probably heard plenty of talk about the “One Big Beautiful Bill,” a piece of federal legislation recently passed into law and endorsed by President Donald Trump.
But what does the new law say about workers’ compensation? Not a whole lot — except in a small provision that amends the Radiation Exposure-Compensation Act to cover claims related to Manhattan Project waste.
How Does it Work?
The new law has a provision for “losses available to living affected individuals,” which, among other things, allows recipients of workers’ compensation benefits related to Manhattan Project waste to claim “additional compensation in the amount of all documented out-of-pocket medical expenses incurred as a result of the specified disease suffered by” the claimant that weren’t covered through workers’ compensation.
What’s Required?
To be eligible, a claimant must submit “contemporaneous written medical records, reports, or billing statements created by or at the direction of a licensed medical professional who provided contemporaneous medical care to the claimant.”
Is there a Deadline?
The One Big Beautiful Bill specifies that “no claimant is eligible to receive compensation … with respect to medical expenses unless … such expenses are submitted on or before Dec. 31, 2028.”
