The effects of aboveground nuclear testing in Nevada did not stop at Utah’s southern border. Now, an important federal compensation program is available to all Utahns who may have been exposed to radiation.
The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, known as RECA, was recently reinstated after expiring for a year. The program provides financial compensation to individuals diagnosed with certain cancers linked to radiation exposure — and now covers residents statewide.
Rebecca Barlow, an RN and program director for the Downwinders Clinic at Intermountain Health St. George Regional Hospital, has spent more than two decades helping families navigate the process. Since the program’s reinstatement, she has been working six days a week to assist applicants.
“I helped a man today, and I said, ‘You’re going to finally get your money,’ because he was up in Salt Lake. His wife died about 11 years ago,” Barlow said. “He said, ‘I’d give a million dollars if I could have her back.’ He started to cry…this is why we do this, is for people to say, you know what, we see your loss and we recognize it for them.”
Previously, eligibility was limited to residents who lived in specific parts of southern Utah for a defined period. That has now changed.
“It used to be you had to be two years from 1951 to ’58 from Fillmore down,” Barlow said. “And now you can be a month in Salt Lake, two months down in here, you know, in southern Utah, and then the rest of the time up in Cache Valley… If you were in Utah for 12 months from ’51 to ’62, then you would qualify if you have one of the qualifying cancers.”
The program also extends to family members who lost a loved one to a radiation-related cancer, as long as compensation has not previously been received.
Qualifying cancers include leukemia, multiple myeloma and primary cancers of major organs. The compensation amount for new applicants has doubled from $50,000 to $100,000.
Barlow says demand has surged.
“I’ve sent out… I would just guess a wager about 350 applications so far,” she said. “And I have at least 275 applications or applicants right now that actually would qualify that I’ve gone through the screening process and they’re in the right place at the right time.”
She also warns families to be cautious of scams. The Downwinders Clinic provides help at no cost, but some attorneys and third parties charge unnecessary fees.
“The highest I’ve heard so far is someone charged him $12,000 to pay and charging him to send the application in, both of which are free to do,” Barlow said. “They don’t need to pay anybody.”
Anyone in Utah, Idaho or New Mexico can contact the Downwinders Clinic at 435-251-4760 to begin a RECA claim.
“My motto is a correct claim is a faster claim for them because then they don’t have to ask for other things,” Barlow said. “It’s very, very reassuring and very actually rewarding to say, ‘Here, let me help you through this.’”
You can contact the Intermountain Downwinder’s Clinic by calling 435-251-4760 and leave a message. Your call will be returned at the earliest opportunity.
