This notice announces the opportunity to apply for funding under the Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program (RESEP). This grant program is administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Federal Office of Rural Health Policy (FORHP) and was developed in consultation with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Indian Health Service (IHS).
The purpose of this program is to: inform and educate the public about services offered through the RESEP program; disseminate information on radiogenic diseases and the importance of early detection; screen eligible individuals for cancer and other radiogenic diseases; provide appropriate referrals for medical treatment; and facilitate putative applicants in the documentation of Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) claims.
The following entities are eligible to apply for the funds described in this notice of funding opportunity:
• National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers;
• Department of Veterans’ Affairs hospitals or medical centers;
• Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC), community health centers, or hospital;
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• Agencies of any State or local government, including any state department of health, that currently provides direct health care services; • IHS health care facilities, including programs provided through tribal contracts, compacts, grants, or cooperative agreements with the IHS and that are determined appropriate to raising the health status of Indians; or
• Nonprofit organizations.
Additionally, only the entities located in the high-impact states cited in the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (42 U.S.C. 2210 and Public Law 106-245); i.e., Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, or Wyoming are eligible to apply.
Individuals eligible for RECA compensation are categorized by the context in which they were placed at risk of exposure to radiation. Those contexts are defined by Sections 4 and 5 of the RECA, codified at 42 U.S.C. § 2210 note (2012) and by DOJ implementing regulations published at 28 C.F.R. Part 79, and in 28 CFR part 794 (see below footnote for more in-depth descriptions and definitions). In general, these categories include:
• Uranium miners,
• Uranium millers,
• Ore transporters;
• Downwinders, i.e., those who were physically present downwind of atmospheric nuclear tests, and
• Onsite participants, i.e., those who participated onsite in a test involving the atmospheric detonation of a nuclear device.
Megan Lincoln
(301) 443-2702