Submitted to Congress 2OO5

U.S. Department of Labor

Employment Standards Administration

2OO2 2OO2

OWCP

Annual Report

to Congress

FY 2OO2

Office of Workers’

Compensation Programs
Submitted to Congress 2OO5

U.S. Department of Labor

Elaine L. Chao, Secretary

Employment Standards Administration

Victoria A. Lipnic, Assistant Secretary

Office of Workers' Compensation Programs

Shelby Hallmark, Director

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material contained herein.

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individuals upon request. 

(202)693-0031 

Internet address: 

www.dol.gov/esa/owcp_org.htm

OWCP Annual 

Report

to Congress

FY 2OO2
SECRETARY OF LABOR

WASHINGTON

THE HONORABLE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE

THE HONORABLE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Gentlemen:

I have enclosed the Department of Labor's annual report to Congress on the 

FY 2002 operations of the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs. The 

report covers administration of the Federal Employees' Compensation

Act as required by Section 8152 of that Act, the Black Lung Benefits Act as

required by Section 426(b) of that Act, the Longshore and Harbor Workers'

Compensation Act (LHWCA) as required by Section 42 of that Act, and the

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act, for the 

period October 1, 2001, through September 30, 2002.

Separate enclosures contain reports on annual audits of the Longshore and 

Harbor Workers' Compensation Act Special Fund and the District of 

Columbia Workmen's Compensation Act Special Fund accounts as required 

by Section 44(j) of LHWCA.

I trust that this report both fulfills the requirements of the respective laws

and is useful to Congress and other interested parties as a comprehensive

source of information on the administration and operation of Federal

workers' compensation programs..

Sincerely,

Elaine L. Chao

Enclosures
Contents

Assistant Secretary's Message	

Director's Message	

OWCP Accomplishments in FY 2002	

Federal Employees' Compensation Act 

Black Lung Benefits Act	 

Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act 

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act

Medical and Vocational Rehabilitation Programs 

Appendix				 

Office Directory

2

3

4

8

18

32

42

50

53

76
Director’s

Message

Assistant

Secretary’s Message

2 3

I am very pleased to forward the Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Programs’ (OWCP) Annual Report for 

Fiscal Year (FY) 2002 to the Secretary, to be transmitted 

to the Congress. 

In FY 2002, OWCP experienced the first full year of 

administering its new compensation statute, the Energy 

Employees Occupational Illness Compensation

Program Act. The Division of Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation, which was 

established in July 2001, performed extremely well in 

launching this benefit program for Department of

Energy employees and their contractors who suffer 

from radiation-related cancer and other diseases as the 

result of their work in producing or testing nuclear 

weapons. 

All of the OWCP workers’ compensation programs 

continued to find new ways to improve current services 

to workers and employers with many new initiatives in 

compliance assistance, early intervention to reduce 

disability, and technological support for timelier 

outcomes and enhanced customer service. 

I am very proud of OWCP’s accomplishments and of 

its hard working and dedicated staff, who have made 

the accomplishments reflected in this report possible.			

Victoria A. Lipnic						

Assistant Secretary			

for Employment Standards

Fiscal Year (FY) 2002 saw the Division of Energy 

Employees Occupational Illness Compensation 

(DEEOIC) complete its first full year of operation. 

Over 4,800 claims were approved and $351 million in 

benefits paid. Nearly four million dollars in medical 

benefits also were paid. Ten Resource Centers, located 

throughout the nation, generated 13,273 claims while a 

series of Traveling Resource Centers generated another 

1,288 claims. The DEEOIC staff demonstrated a 

commitment to ensuring that nuclear weapons workers 

who became ill as a result of their employment receive 

timely compensation and medical care. 

During FY 2002, the Division of Federal Employees’ 

Compensation (DFEC) continued to seek ways to 

improve the claims development and communications 

processes. DFEC increased its utilization of online 

access and electronic data interface systems such as 

“real-time” electronic processing of pharmacy bill

and the centralized Interactive Voice Response system 

to provide prompt and efficient delivery of customer 

services. The FEC program also continued to

produce savings through its Periodic Roll Management 

project and medical cost containment initiatives. 

Additionally, the FEC program created a “Pledge to 

Our Customers” outlining the service quality and 

responsiveness FEC clients can expect. Based on

feedback from telephone surveys, it appears the 

pledge is being taken seriously by DFEC staff, as 

indicated by a 21 percent increase in customer 

satisfaction over FY 2001 results.

As a result of the revised Black Lung regulations 

which became effective January 19, 2001, the 

Division of Coal Mine Workers’ Compensation 

(DCMWC) saw an increase in claim filings in FY 

2001 which continued into FY 2002. DCMWC has 

met this challenge by reallocating resources to the 

most critical workloads and is working diligently to 

reduce its backlog of claims. 

FY 2002 also was a challenging year for the Division

of Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation 

(DLHWC) as the insurance industry suffered through 

a number of insolvencies and declining stability 

ratings. DLHWC responded by taking positive steps 

to secure the financial integrity and security of the 

Longshore program. 

OWCP staff worked very hard to accomplish the 

important missions of its four programs. Their efforts 

resulted in continued improvement in the services 

delivered to OWCP’s customers and stakeholders

in FY 2002. 										

Shelby Hallmark			

Director, Office of Workers' 					

Compensation Programs
OWCP Accomplishments

in FY 2OO2

I

4 5

FEC was noted for having clear, ambitious, 

outcome-oriented goals, properly aimed

at assisting injury recovery and return to work, 

promptly delivering benefits, and containing 

Federal costs.

 n a Performance Assessment Rating Tool 

review conducted in FY 2002, the Federal 

Employees’ Compensation (FEC) program 

was rated “Moderately Effective.”

Under the Periodic Roll Management project, 

over 4,200 long-term cases were reevaluated by 

FEC program teams. In addition to making 

sure that the injured workers continue to receive 

appropriate medical care, the reviews resulted in 

compensation cost savings of $26 million.

FECA medical costs were reduced by $175.2 

million using fee schedules developed for 

outpatient hospital and physician services. The 

ongoing Correct Coding Initiative (CCI) bill 

review saved an additional $12.7 million. 

When combined with fee schedule savings for 

inpatient and pharmacy services, total medical 

savings from fee schedules and the CCI were 

$242.5 million, or 26.4 percent of all medical 

charges in FY 2002. 

FEC developed a “Pledge to Our Customers” 

which is posted on its website to share specific 

expectations for customer service with program 

stakeholders. A Communications Specialist 

position was created in each office to take the 

next step in communications redesign. 

FEC Program 

Government Performance 

And Results Act Accomplishments

In FY 2002

Average Lost Production In 1st Year of Disability Was 164 Days;

Average Time Away From Work Has Decreased By 25 Days Since 

Baseline Year FY 1997. 

Periodic Roll Management Project Saved $25.6 Million in Compensation 

Benefit Costs.

Total Medical Cost Savings From Fee Schedules On Physician, Hospital, 

And Pharmacy Charges And The Correct Coding Initiative Review Were 

$243 Million.
6 7

OWCP Accomplishments in FY 2OO2

The OASIS imaging project was expanded to 

include all new incoming mail, allowing FEC to 

centralize its mail operations with a single 

vendor. 

In its first full year of operation, the Division of 

Energy Employees Occupational Illness 

Compensation (DEEOIC) provided benefit 

payments of approximately $351 million to 

over 4,800 Department of Energy (DOE) 

employees and employees of private companies 

that worked under contract to DOE, or the 

survivors of the employees, who suffer from 

radiation-related cancer, beryllium-related 

disease, or chronic silicosis as a result of their 

work in producing or testing nuclear weapons.

The Energy Case Management System was 

enhanced with the addition of several new 

features and subsystems. The Telephone 

Management System was installed in DEEOIC 

district offices to log and track incoming calls 

received on Energy Employees Occupational 

Illness Compensation Program Act cases. A 

transaction processing module, the 

Compensation Payment System, was 

implemented to enable authorized users to 

create, verify, and authorize compensation 

payments on accepted claims. Also, the Energy 

Payment System was developed to pay 

expenses associated with the treatment of 

accepted medical conditions. 

During FY 2002, the insurance industry suffered 

a number of insolvencies as well as declining 

financial stability ratings for a number of 

companies. The Division of Longshore and 

Harbor Workers’ Compensation (DLHWC) 

responded by taking steps to secure the integrity 

and security of its insurance compliance 

program and systems. DLHWC improved the 

process for handling insolvencies to ensure 

seamless benefit delivery to claimants, and 

strengthened rules and procedures governing 

security deposit requirements and the review of 

insurance authorization applications. 

A study of the Longshore rehabilitation system 

was completed whereby claimants, service 

providers, and program staff were surveyed to 

provide suggestions for service improvements. 

Proposed changes and enhancements that 

resulted from the study include improved client

recruitment using timely and clearer communications, automation of referrals, increased focus 

on job placement outcomes, and development 

of a Government Performance and Results Act 

outcome measure.
Federal Employees’

Compensation Act

I

8 9

Employees’ Compensation (FEC) program continually 

has changed to meet its commitment to provide high 

quality service to employees and their employing 

agencies while also minimizing the human, social and 

financial costs of work-related injuries. During Fiscal Year (FY) 2002, the program provided 

workers' compensation coverage for approximately 2.7 

million Federal workers. Peace Corps and VISTA 

volunteers, Federal petit and grand jurors, volunteer 

members of the Civil Air Patrol, Reserve Officer 

Training Corps Cadets, Job Corps, Youth Conservation 

Corps enrollees, and non-Federal law enforcement 

officers when injured under certain circumstances 

involving crimes against the United States also are 

covered.

Benefits and Services

The primary goal of the FEC program is assisting 

Federal employees who have sustained work-related 

injuries or disease by providing both appropriate 

financial benefits and help in returning to work. 

Benefits provided to employees covered by the Federal 

Employees’ Compensation Act (FECA) include 

payment for all reasonable and necessary medical 

treatment for work-related injury or disease. In timelyfiled traumatic injury claims, the FECA requires the 

employer to continue the injured worker's regular pay 

during the first 45 calendar days of disability. If the 

disability continues after 45 calendar days, or in cases of 

occupational disease, the FEC program will make 

payments to replace lost income. Compensation for 

wage loss is paid at two-thirds of the employee's salary 

if there are no dependents, or three-fourths if there is at 

least one dependent. The FEC program compensates 

injured workers for permanent impairment of limbs and

 ntroduction

In 1916, President Wilson signed the first 

comprehensive law protecting Federal

workers from the effects of work injuries.

In the years following, the Federal

Benefit Outlays

Under FECA FY 2002

TOTAL BENEFITS*: $2,308 MILLION

Long Term Disability (Wage Loss) 52.6% $1,214 Million

Medical Benefits 28.6% $660 Million

Temporary Disability (Wage Loss) 12.8% $295 Million

Death Benefits 5.7% $131 Million

Vocational Rehabilitation 0.3% $8 million

*Actual Obligations
Expenses for a small number of cases are not charged

back to employing agencies but also are covered by the 

DOL appropriation. For FY 2002, these non-chargeback 

expenses were approximately $33 million. Nonchargeable costs are attributable to injuries that occurred 

before December 1, 1960, when the chargeback system 

was enacted, to employees of agencies that are no longer 

in existence, or to injuries which have FECA coverage 

under various “Fringe Acts” such as the Contract Marine 

Observers Act, Law Enforcement Officers Act, and the 

War Hazards Act, that did not contain mechanisms for 

billing employers.

For FY 2002, FEC program administrative expenditures 

totaled $119.9 million, about 4.9 percent of total program 

costs. Of this amount, $110.4 million was in direct 

appropriations to the Office of Workers’ Compensation 

Programs (OWCP), including $81.2 million in salaries

and expenses and $29.2 million in “fair share” 

expenditures out of the FECA Special Benefits account. 

These latter funds are specifically earmarked for OWCP 

capital investments for the development and operation of 

automated data management and operations support 

systems, periodic roll case management, and medical bill 

cost control. Another approximately $9.5 million are for 

legal, investigative, and other support from the Employees' 

Compensation Appeals Board (ECAB), Office of the 

Solicitor, and the Office of the Inspector General. 

Case Adjudication and Management

Timely Decision-Making

Approximately 158,000 injury and illness claims were 

filed under FECA in FY 2002. Eighty-four percent were 

for traumatic injuries, such as those caused by slips and 

falls, and 16 percent were for occupational illness arising 

from exposure or exertion over a longer period. For 

traumatic injury claims, 96 percent were adjudicated

within 45 days of the day the OWCP received notice

of the injury. A high rate of timeliness also was 

achieved for deciding non-traumatic injury claims. For 

“basic” occupational disease requiring only limited 

development of the facts and medical evidence, 91 

percent were adjudicated within 90 days. Seventy-six 

percent of the more complex “extended” occupational 

disease cases were adjudicated within 180 days. The 

average time for adjudication of all occupational disease 

cases was 85 days.

Disability extended beyond the 45-day continuation-ofpay period in 14 percent of all cases. The FEC program 

strives each year to meet a high standard of timeliness 

and accuracy in adjudication and payment of claims. In 

FY 2002, 84 percent of wage-loss claims were paid 

within 14 days of receipt and 95 percent within 60 days. 

Management of Disability Cases

OWCP’s primary Government Performance and 

Results Act goal, reduction of the rate of Lost 

Production Days (LPD), guides its case management 

strategy. The goal is based on measuring the duration of 

disability for cases in the first year of lost time from 

work, including continuation of pay and compensation, 

and calculating a rate of disability days per 100 

employees for each agency.

The government-wide LPD was 74.3 days in FY 2001 

and 78.3 days in FY 2002. U.S. Postal Service (USPS) 

cases account for roughly half of the annual total of 

approximately two million LPD days for Federal 

employees. Employment reductions in USPS have 

resulted in losses of light duty and other reemployment

other parts of the body. Benefits to survivors 

in the event of work-related death also are 

payable. The FECA provides training and job 

placement assistance to help injured workers 

return to gainful employment. Monetary 

benefits (with the exception of continuation of 

pay) are paid directly by the FEC program to 

injured employees, their dependents or 

survivors, and to service providers. 

During FY 2002, 158,118 new cases were 

created and the FEC program provided over 

283,000 workers more than $2.3 billion in 

benefits for work-related injuries or illnesses. 

Of these benefit payments, over $1.5 billion 

were for wage-loss compensation, $668 

million for medical and rehabilitation services, 

and $131 million in death benefit payments to surviving 

dependents.

The FECA is the exclusive remedy by which Federal 

employees may obtain disability, medical, and/or 

survivor benefits from the United States for workplace 

injuries.

Funding

Benefit payments made by the program come from the 

Employees' Compensation Fund. Fund outlays are 

billed to employing agencies who each year replenish 

the Fund through a mechanism known as chargeback.

Most agencies, except the U.S. Postal Service and other 

non-appropriated fund agencies, include those 

chargeback costs in their next annual appropriation 

requests to Congress. Remittances to the Employees' 

Compensation Fund are not made until the first month 

of the subsequent fiscal year. This means that there is at 

least 15 months between the dates of the chargeback 

"bill" and when the payment to the fund is completed. 

Given cost-of-living increases in wage-loss benefits and 

inflation affecting medical costs, by the time remittance 

is made it usually is insufficient to cover current outlays. 

The annual Department of Labor (DOL) appropriation 

makes up any difference.

10 11

Federal Employees’ Compensation Act

FECA Benefit Expenditures 

IN MILLIONS OF CONSTANT DOLLARS*

 FISCAL YEAR

$1,400

$1,200

$1,000

$800

$600

$400

$200

$0

*Actual Obligations in current dollars deflated by CPI-W (urban wage earners and clerical 

workers, U.S. city average, all items), 1982-1984=100.

**FY 1996 excludes one-time (upward) adjustment of $85.5 million to implement 

accrual-based accounting for benefit liabilities.

 1993 1994 1995 1996** 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
opportunities for injured postal workers. As a result, 

USPS’s LPD in FY 2002 was 131 days, a 12 percent 

increase over FY 2001. At the same time, LPD for all 

non-postal government held steady at 53.8 days in both 

FY 2001 and FY 2002.

The elements of the FEC strategy to improve this rate 

had these components in FY 2002:

Federal Safety and Health Initiative. OWCP regional 

directors worked with Federal facilities in their regions 

to meet the government-wide goals initially established 

in the Federal Worker 2000 initiative: injury and illness 

prevention and timely reporting of injuries. Both of 

these factors have a direct effect on the LPD rate.

Early Nurse Intervention.

Quality Case Management.

Periodic Roll Management.

Early Nurse Intervention

Under the FECA, an employee who files notice of a 

traumatic injury within 30 days may receive continued 

pay from the employer at no charge to leave for up to 45 

days of disability. While this is an extremely important 

benefit for the employee, it means that OWCP 

frequently does not receive information about the level 

of disability until many days or weeks have elapsed. To 

obtain earlier information and intervene more quickly in 

these cases, nurses are assigned to contact claimants by

telephone within 30 days after a notice of injury is filed. 

The nurse obtains information, evaluates the level of 

disability, and notifies the district office of pending 

surgery or prolonged recovery. Continuation-of-Pay 

(COP) nurse intervention is limited to 30 days and is a 

relatively low-cost form of intervention that gives a head 

start to case management. OWCP telephonic nurses 

intervened in 15,105 cases during FY 2002.

Quality Case Management

Quality Case Management (QCM) was implemented in 

the FEC program in FY 1993 as another means of 

reducing the number of days an injured worker was out 

of work. Every injury case with a wage-loss claim filed 

and no return-to-work date is reviewed for assignment 

to an early intervention nurse contracted by the FEC 

program. From the very earliest stages after the injury 

the nurse meets with the injured worker and serves as 

the human face of OWCP. Coordinating medical care 

and return-to-work issues, the nurse works not only with 

the injured employee but also the attending physician 

and the employing agency. If it seems that the injured 

worker will not return to work soon, the nurse 

coordinates the transfer of the case for vocational 

rehabilitation services and/or more aggressive medical 

intervention.

In FY 2002, nurses intervened in 15,645 lost time 

claims and 2,137 workers were referred for vocational 

rehabilitation services. Nearly 8,800 injured workers 

returned to work in FY 2002 with the assistance of 

contract nurses or rehabilitation counselors. Eighty-four 

percent of the cases with resolutions during FY 2002 

were resolved within 30 months of the date disability 

began. The average length of disability measured for 

cases that had begun wage-loss payments in the 

previous year was 164 days.

Periodic Roll Management Project

In addition to stressing early intervention, the FEC 

program dedicated resources to thoroughly reviewing 

long-term disability cases. Periodic Roll Management 

(PRM) claims examiners review longer term cases to 

verify continuing eligibility, schedule medical 

examinations if work capability is unclear or treatment 

is inappropriate, and consider vocational rehabilitation 

and placement assistance, with a view toward 

reemployment of injured workers. PRM has proven to 

be hugely successful, with outcomes exceeding

OWCP’s original estimates. In FY 2002, staff reduced 

compensation costs by $25.6 million. Over 4,200 cases 

were screened, and benefits were adjusted or terminated 

in over 2,500 cases where beneficiaries’ disability had 

either resolved or lessened to the point that return to 

work was possible.

Given the low administrative costs ($10 million in FY 

2002), PRM continues to be a most cost-effective 

means of reducing overall compensation costs and 

ensuring appropriate medical intervention for injured 

workers.

OWCP Automated System for Imaging Services 

(OASIS)

In FY 2001, the FEC program successfully completed 

the OASIS project, wherein all new workers’ 

compensation claims are imaged and managed in a 

paperless environment. The project was expanded in 

FY 2002 to include the imaging of all incoming 

documents. This allowed the program to move to a 

central mailroom through a contractor where mail is 

scanned and transmitted to DFEC district offices.

The OASIS project has minimized the loss of case 

documents, and allows rapid access to any case 

document.

12 13

Federal Employees’ Compensation Act

Quality Case Management

Results For FY 2002

Nearly 16,000 Injured Workers Were Referred To

Nurses For Early Intervention.

8,796 Injured Workers Returned To Work v. 8,175 in 2001.

84% of QCM Cases Resolved Within 30 Months

From Start of Disability.

FECA Benefits Charged To

Employing Agencies

CHARGEBACK YEAR 2002 

Chargeback Total: $2,219 Million

Postal Service $785 million

Defense $619 million*

Veterans Affairs $152 million

Transportation $102 million

Justice $96 million

Treasury $88 million

Agriculture $70 million

All Other $308 million

*Defense includes Navy ($248M), Army ($175M), Air Force ($133M), and

Dept. of Defense ($64M). 

Note: The sum of individual agencies may not equal total due to rounding.
14 15

Federal Employees’ Compensation Act

Hearings and Review

In FY 2002, the Branch of Hearings and Review 

experienced a setback in its efforts to reduce the number 

of cases pending review and scheduling, as well as the 

average time from request for a hearing to issuance of a 

decision. The backlog of cases pending assignment 

increased from 918 on October1, 2001, to 1,245 as of 

October 1, 2002. 

In FY 2002, it took 266 days from receipt of the case to 

a decision on a request for hearing, up from 241 days in 

FY 2001. The time lapse from receipt of case to 

remand/reversal before hearing rose from 100 days in 

FY 2001 to 133 days in FY 2002. The amount of time 

cases remained in the Branch from their receipt to 

issuance of a decision based upon a review of the 

written record increased to 135 days in FY 2002 from 

125 days in FY 2001.

The major reason for the increase in cases pending 

review and the time it takes to issue decisions was 

staffing shortages. DFEC lost several hearing 

representatives to OWCP’s new Energy program and 

several claims examiners received promotions to other 

branches within DFEC. A period of time was needed to 

advertise, hire and train the staffing replacements. While 

the hiring and training process was underway, case 

backlogs increased substantially and the timeliness of 

decisions was greatly affected.

As the process of imaging new cases and mail was 

implemented, hearing representatives became able to do 

their work from locations outside the national office. 

The Branch took advantage of this enormous technical 

step to recruit hearing representatives from outside the 

Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. This method of 

hiring greatly increased interest in the hearing 

representative position among experienced claims 

examiners in the field, and should improve the Branch’s 

performance.

Correct Coding Initiative

 

The FEC program cost containment efforts initiated in 

1999 continued to reduce medical costs in FY 2002. 

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services of the 

Department of Health and Human Services developed 

the National Correct Coding Initiative to promote 

national correct coding methodologies and to control 

improper coding that leads to inappropriate payment for 

outpatient services. In addition to applying the Correct 

Coding Initiative (CCI), OWCP uses the Diagnostic 

Related Group methodology to reduce impatient costs 

and a pharmacy fee schedule. The CCI produced $12.7 

million in savings against amounts billed in FY 2002. 

Combined with $229.8 million saved from application 

of the fee schedule, total medical billings were reduced 

by 26.4 percent in FY 2002. 

Services to Claimants and Beneficiaries

During FY 2002, the FEC program continued its focus 

on improving customer service and satisfaction with 

significant changes in the way business is conducted. 

Communications Redesign Initiatives

Improvements to customer service through a 

comprehensive redesign of FEC communications, 

including equipment, procedures, goals and measures 

continued during FY 2002. The Communications

Steering Committee provided a strategic emphasis on 

systematic changes and measurable outcomes for the 

wide array of communications and customer service 

issues.

On the recommendation of the Committee, a 

Communications Specialist position was filled in each 

district office. Charged with directing and coordinating 

all communications initiatives within a district office, the 

specialists focused on addressing communications 

goals, measures, and additional standardization during 

FY 2002. Specific quantitative and qualitative goals and 

standard means for measuring district office 

performance were adopted to fulfill the “Pledge to Our 

Customers.” Posted on the FEC website, this pledge 

commits to levels of customer service in a variety of 

areas, including telephone wait times, timeliness in 

response to phone messages, use of clear language, 

courtesy and professionalism, and accuracy of response.

During FY 2002, the communications specialists began 

using standardized telephone surveys, based on the 

2001 National Customer Satisfaction Survey, as a 

means to assess telephone service. Over 81 percent of 

callers surveyed in FY 2002 reported they received a 

call back in less than three days – the response time 

detailed in the Pledge. More than 96 percent of callers 

surveyed reported the language used by the district 

office was clear and understandable. Ninety-four 

percent of respondents indicated they were somewhat or 

very satisfied by the level of courtesy and 

professionalism demonstrated by the district office. 

Over 83 percent of callers surveyed were somewhat or 

very satisfied with the accuracy of the response 

received. Nearly 59 percent of respondents reported 

they were somewhat or very satisfied by the district 

office’s performance. This marks a 21 percent increase 

over the FY 2001 baseline. To help continue this trend, 

every employee with regular telephone interaction with 

FEC program customers completed advanced telephone 

customer service training.

District offices now have telephonic reporting capacity 

to capture real-time and historical data on call volumes 

and average wait times, as well as other call-related 

information. During FY 2002, 3,027,757 calls were 

received in the 12 district offices. Each district office 

averages over 21,000 calls each month. The average 

wait time was 2 minutes and 52 seconds, well within the 

pledged goal of an average of less than five minutes.

The National Call Center answered basic inquiries from 

claimants and was used during Health Benefits Open 

Season to answer requests for health plan materials and 

enrollment forms. The Interactive Voice Response 

(IVR) system, which provides automated entitlement 

information to callers, was enhanced to handle requests 

for non-invasive medical treatment, expanded to handle 

twice the initial volume, and streamlined to one toll-free 

number available throughout the country.

Performance Assessment

A FY 2002 Performance Assessment Rating

Tool (PART) review gave the FEC program a score of 

“Moderately Effective”. FEC was noted for having 

clear, ambitious, outcome-oriented goals, properly aimed 

at assisting injury recovery and return to work,
continues to drive outreach programs and activities with 

other Federal employing agencies. While all agencies 

are provided with data on their timeliness and lost 

production days performance, the FEC program 

continues to post data on the performance of the largest 

Federal agencies on the OWCP/DFEC web site 

(www.dol-esa.gov/fesii/).

Online Access and Electronic Data Interface

Use of the Agency Query System, a vital tool by which 

agencies can access benefit entitlement information to 

answer inquires, continued to grow during FY 2002. 

The system now is being utilized by numerous Federal 

agencies and Congressional offices.

The FEC program’s electronic receipt of pharmacy bills 

is a “real-time” service that offers on-line adjudication of 

pharmacy bills. This provides a higher degree of 

customer service to both the pharmacy and the injured 

worker as the pharmacy knows immediately whether or 

not the program will pay for a service. Pharmacies are 

more likely to bill the program on behalf of the injured 

worker if they know that they will be reimbursed for the 

services provided. The program also has in place a realtime authorization system so pharmacies can get certain 

prescriptions reviewed and approved over the telephone. 

 The percentage of bills submitted electronically 

represented 47 percent of the total pharmacy bills 

received.

FEC continues to expand the use of Electronic Data 

Interchange to receive notices of injury and occupational 

illness (Forms CA-1 and CA-2) electronically in an 

effort to expedite entitlement determinations. Several 

new agencies were brought up into production and 

became operational in FY 2002.

16 17

Federal Employees’ Compensation Act

promptly delivering benefits, and containing Federal 

costs. OWCP began implementing the following 

reforms to address the PART recommendations:

Contracted with an outside consultant for an evaluation 

of FECA disability management and wage-loss 

compensation payment strategies and a comparison to 

state/industry best practices.

Changed the method used to estimate Federal agencies’ 

liability under FECA to ensure timely submission of 

financial reporting data. 

Began work to develop a Managerial Cost Accounting 

system to permit cost-effectiveness assessments.

Developed a customer service strategic goal focused on 

FEC program communications.

Services to Employing Agencies

During FY 2002, the FEC program continued to 

provide a variety of technical assistance and other 

services to employing agencies.

Timely Submission of Notices and Claims

The FEC program emphasizes timely submission of 

notices of injury and occupational illness (Forms CA-1 

and CA-2) and claims for wage loss (Form CA-7). 

There has been an increase in the timeliness of 

submissions of notices, from 56.6 percent in FY 2001 to 

57 percent in FY 2002. Timeliness of submission of 

claims for wage loss also increased during FY 2002 to 

42.9 percent from 42.3 percent in FY 2001.

FEC program regulations require employing agencies to 

submit a Notice of Injury (Form CA-1) or a Notice of 

Occupational Illness (Form CA-2) within 10 working 

days (or 14 calendar days) of receipt from an employee 

if lost time or medical expenses are claimed or expected. 

 In addition, the employer is required to submit the 

initial wage-loss claim (Form CA-7) no more than five 

working days (or seven calendar days) after receipt from 

the employee.

OWCP’s ability to act promptly on medical bills and 

prevent any interruption of income is directly and 

critically related to the early submission of these forms. 

In return for timely submission and in keeping with the 

long-standing emphasis OWCP has placed on it, 

OWCP has promised and delivered even earlier 

interventions. The result has been continued 

improvement in timely filing by many employing 

agencies and an overall reduction in lost production 

days.

The Federal Employees’ Safety and Injury Initiative 

includes goals for timely submission of notices and lost 

production days. Ongoing emphasis by the FEC 

program on the need for improvement in these areas

Number of Employees

(FTE Staffing Used)	 1,000

Administrative Expenditures* $ 110.4 M

Cases Created	 158,118

Wage-Loss Claims Initiated 23,193

Total Compensation and Benefit

Payments (Actual Obligations)** $2,307.9 M

Number of Medical Bills Processed 3,425,810

*OWCP expenditures; excludes DOL support costs, but includes "fair share"

capital investment costs of 30.3 million in FY 2001 and 29.2 million in FY 2002, 

respectively.

**Compensation, medical, and survivor benefits.

Federal Employees’

Compensation Act

 930

 $ 109.3 M

 165,915

 23,386

 $2,199.3 M

 3,189,233

 FY 2001 FY 2002
Black Lung

Benefits Act

I

18 19

enacted as part of the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act 

of 1969, the first comprehensive Federal legislation to 

regulate health and safety conditions in the coal industry. 

This law created a temporary system to compensate past 

victims of dust exposure in the mines with public funds 

administered by the Social Security Administration 

(SSA).

The number of claims filed in the early 1970's far 

exceeded pre-enactment estimates. The Act was 

amended by the Black Lung Benefits Act of 1972 

(BLBA) to require the use of simplified interim 

eligibility criteria for all claims filed with SSA, and to 

transfer the receipt of new claims to the Department of 

Labor (DOL) in 1973. OWCP assumed responsibility 

for processing and paying new claims on July 1, 1973.

Most of the claims filed prior to that date remained until 

recently within the jurisdiction of SSA. As of 

September 30, 2002, approximately 65,000 active Part 

B beneficiaries were receiving total monthly cash 

benefits of $36 million from SSA.

 ntroduction

In 2002, OWCP’s Division of Coal Mine 

Workers' Compensation (DCMWC) 

completed its twenty-ninth year administering 

Part C of the Black Lung program. The 

initial Black Lung benefits program was

On September 26, 1997, officials from SSA and DOL 

signed a Memorandum of Understanding transferring 

responsibility for managing currently active SSA Black 

Lung claims to DOL. This change was aimed at ending 

confusion about which Federal agency handles the 

claims and enhancing customer service to all Black 

Lung beneficiaries. In FY 2002, DOL managed all 

Federal black lung claims. However, formal appeals on 

Part B claims were referred to SSA.

Early in 1978, Congress enacted two new statutes that 

further amended the Act. The Black Lung Benefits 

Reform Act of 1977 (Public Law 95-239) again 

mandated the use of interim criteria based on the use of 

presumptions to resolve old unapproved claims. Public 

Law 95-227, the Black Lung Benefits Revenue Act of 

1977, created the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund 

(Trust Fund), financed by an excise tax on coal mined 

and sold in the United States. The law authorized the 

Trust Fund to pay benefits in cases where no responsible 

coal mine operator could be located and transferred 

liability for all claims filed with DOL based on 

employment in the coal industry before 1970 from 

individual employers to the Trust Fund. These 

amendments made the Federal program permanent, 

although state benefits would continue to offset Federal 

compensation wherever they were available.
20 21

Black Lung Benefits Act

Current administration of the Black Lung 

Part C program is governed by 1981 

legislation: Title I is the Black Lung 

Benefits Revenue Act of 1981, and Title II 

is the Black Lung Benefits Amendments 

of 1981. The 1981 Amendments 

tightened eligibility standards, eliminated 

certain burden of proof presumptions, and 

temporarily increased the excise tax on 

coal to address the problem of a mounting 

insolvency of the Trust Fund, which was 

by then indebted to the U.S. Treasury by 

over $1.5 billion.

The 1981 amendments slowed but did not 

stop the growth of the Trust Fund debt, 

which by the end of 1985 had surpassed 

$2.8 billion. The Consolidated Omnibus Budget 

Reconciliation Act of 1985, enacted in 1986, increased 

the excise tax by an additional 10 percent through 

December 31, 1995, and put into effect a five-year 

moratorium on the interest charges due the Treasury on 

the Trust Fund's accumulated debt. In late 1987, Public

Law 100-203 extended the duration of the increased tax 

rates through December 31, 2013. These budget-related 

legislative actions made no further changes in the Act's 

eligibility criteria and adjudication procedures.

Benefits and Services

The Black Lung Part C program provides two types of 

benefits, monthly wage replacement and medical 

services. The program pays a standard monthly benefit 

(income replacement) to miners determined to be totally 

disabled from black lung disease, and to certain eligible 

survivors of deceased miners. The monthly rate of 

benefits is adjusted upward to provide additional 

compensation for up to three eligible dependents.

The program provides two types of medical services 

related to pneumoconiosis (black lung disease): 

diagnostic testing for all miner claimants to determine 

the presence or absence of black lung disease, and the 

degree of associated disability; and medical coverage for 

treatment of black lung disease and directly related 

conditions for miners entitled to monthly benefits.

Total DOL Black Lung program expenditures for these 

benefits in Fiscal Year (FY) 2002 were $384.2 million, a 

decrease of $12.7 million from FY 2001. In FY 2002, 

benefits were provided from the Trust Fund to 

approximately 47,000 beneficiaries each month. The 

Trust Fund had a balance of $38.8 million at the end of 

FY 2002, with an outstanding debt to the Treasury of 

$7.7 billion.

In FY 2002, the United Mine Workers of America 

(UMWA) Health and Retirement Funds were 

reimbursed $4.9 million from the Trust Fund for black 

lung-related medical care provided by them to 

UMWA/DCMWC joint beneficiaries.

As an additional benefit to claimants, the law provides 

for payment of attorneys' fees and legal costs incurred in 

connection with approved benefit claims. The fees must 

be approved by adjudication officers. During the past 

year DCMWC processed 132 fee petitions and paid 

approximately $0.5 million in attorneys’ fees from the 

Trust Fund.

In FY 2002, 977 claims were forwarded for formal 

hearings before the Office of Administrative Law 

Judges (OALJ) and 481 claims were forwarded for 

appeals to the Benefits Review Board (BRB). At the 

end of FY 2002, the OALJ had 1,252 claims pending 

while 415 were pending before the BRB.

Medical Services

The Black Lung Part C program provides both 

diagnostic and medical treatment services. Diagnostic 

testing is provided for all miner claimants to determine 

the presence or absence of black lung disease, and the 

degree of associated disability. These tests include a 

chest x-ray, pulmonary function study (breathing test), 

arterial blood gas study, and a physical examination.

Medical coverage for treatment of black lung disease 

and directly related conditions is provided for miner 

beneficiaries. This coverage includes prescription 

drugs, office visits, and hospitalizations. Also provided, 

with specific approval, are items of durable medical 

equipment, like hospital beds, home oxygen, and 

nebulizers; outpatient pulmonary rehabilitation therapy; 

and home nursing visits.

Total medical expenditures under the Black Lung Part C 

program during FY 2002 were $64.2 million. This 

includes payments of $5.1 million for diagnostic 

services, $54.2 million for medical treatment, and $4.9 

million in reimbursements to the UMWA Health and 

Retirement Funds for costs of treating Black Lung 

beneficiaries. Approximately 446,000 bills were 

processed during the year.

Black Lung

Benefit Expenditures 

IN MILLIONS OF CONSTANT DOLLARS*

 FISCAL YEAR

$400

$300

$200

$100

$0

*Current dollars deflated by CPI-W (urban wage earners and clerical workers, U.S. city 

average, all items), 1982-1984=100.

1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Black Lung Benefits Act

Accomplishments

Implementation of New Program Regulations

On August 9, 2001, Judge Emmett Sullivan ruled 

against a challenge to the regulations developed in 

accordance with the provisions of Executive Order 

12866 that was filed by the National Mining 

Association and others. In upholding DOL’s 

regulations, Judge Sullivan found in favor of the 

Government on every count. Judge Sullivan also lifted 

his partial stay order and the Black Lung program began 

issuing schedules for the submission of additional 

evidence. On June 14, 2002, the District of Columbia 

Circuit issued a decision upholding all but one of the 

revised regulations. National Mining Ass’n v. Chao, 

292 F.3d 849 (D.C. Cir. 2002).

DCMWC believes that the new regulations have 

fostered a more streamlined claims review process 

while being fairer to miners and other claimants. As a 

result of the new rules, receipts of new claims during FY 

2001 were 45.5 percent higher than in FY 2000 (up 

from 5,065 to 7,824) and this high level of new claims 

continued in FY 2002, with 6,998 filings. The approval 

rate at the first level of administrative review increased 

slightly from 8.2 percent to 8.5 percent.

Claimant Diagnostic Testing

When a miner files a black lung claim, one of the first 

actions is to schedule the claimant for a series of four 

diagnostic tests (chest x-ray, pulmonary function study, 

arterial blood gas study, and physical examination) at the 

expense of the Trust Fund. As required by the new 

program regulations effective after January 19, 2001, 

DCMWC implemented improved procedures for this 

testing:

After conducting an extensive survey of pulmonary 

physicians during FY 2000, a list of authorized qualified 

providers was developed and published in the 

DCMWC Program Manual. The list is updated on a 

quarterly basis and contains approximately 240 

providers.

A miner can choose the physician or facility which will 

provide the tests, but the choice must be from the list of 

qualified providers.

The provider must practice within the miner’s state of 

residence or a contiguous state.

To prevent possible fraud or abuse, the miner may not 

choose any physician who has examined or treated him 

within one year prior to the date of filing, nor may he 

choose a physician who is a close relative.

All pulmonary function studies must be done using a 

flow-volume loop, which ensures greater accuracy in 

recording the results of the maneuvers performed by the 

patient.

DCMWC believes that these revised procedures have 

improved the quality of the evidence submitted in Black 

Lung claims, making the entire claims review process 

fairer to all parties.

Initial Claims Processing

The revised Black Lung program regulations became 

effective January 19, 2001, and pertain to claims filed after 

that date. With certain exceptions, the revised regulations 

also apply to claims that were pending on January 19, 2001. 

Representatives of the coal mine industry filed a suit in 

Federal court challenging these regulations shortly after they 

were published. The judge assigned to review the suit 

issued an injunction barring decisions based on the new 

regulations until after he had reviewed them.

The injunction lasted six months and created a severe 

backlog of claims awaiting preliminary decision, especially 

when coupled with the large number of claims that were 

filed. On September 30, 2001, over 5,000 claims were 

pending. During the year ending September 30, 2002, 

nearly 7,000 additional claims were filed. Although 

thousands of decisions had been issued, DCMWC had a 

backlog of approximately 6,000 claims.

DCMWC addressed this backlog by setting realistic 

performance goals to lower the average processing time per 

claim, concentrating efforts on the oldest claims, and 

reallocating resources to the most critical workloads.

Operation and Maintenance of Automated

Support Package

DCMWC’s contract with Computer Science Corporation 

provides the resources to operate and maintain the Black 

Lung program’s Automated Support Package (ASP). The 

ASP includes the client-server computer system, data 

processing operations, medical bill processing, 

telecommunications support, and certain administrative 

functions. During FY 2002, innovations were made in 

several areas:

The DCMWC network was successfully integrated into the 

Employment Standards Administration (ESA) network.

The desktops of DCMWC employees were upgraded 

to the Windows-XP® operating platform.

DCMWC’s automated correspondence system, CORS, 

was upgraded in two ways: (1) standardized forms and 

letters were revised for the processing of claims under 

the revised regulations; and (2) the system itself was 

upgraded to use WORD-2002®.

The DCMWC automated policy data base, Black Lung 

Web, was made available to all employees. The Web 

has a user-friendly opening page and a powerful search 

engine that provides ready-access to more than 1,300 

documents, including the DCMWC Procedure Manual 

and routine policy-related directives, memorandums, 

and all-point E-mails.

Management Of SSA

Part B Black Lung Claims

In FY 2002

Professional And Timely Claims Maintenance Services

Provided To Part B Claimants By DCMWC Included:

Completing More Than 10,000 Maintenance

Actions, With Average Completion Time Of Less Than

One Week From Notification

Managing The Expenditure Of More Than $453

Million In Benefits

DCMWC Was Responsible For Over 65,000 Active Part B Cases.

22 23
24 25

Black Lung Benefits Act

DCMWC’s E-mail system was converted from Novell 

GroupWise® to Microsoft Exchange ®, to make it 

more compatible with other government E-mail 

systems.

A new adjudication level, Proposed Decision and Order, 

was added to the ASP in accordance with the revised 

regulations.

Part B Implementation and Operations

The Division of Coal Mine Workers’ Compensation has 

been responsible for maintenance actions on Part B 

(originally SSA) Black Lung claims since the fall of 

1997. A Memorandum of Understanding between SSA 

and DOL was signed on September 26, 1997, 

transferring the responsibility. The transfer was aimed at 

ending confusion as to which Federal agency handles 

Part B claims and enhancing the services provided to 

beneficiaries. The Black Lung claimant population now 

deals with a single agency with more efficient use of 

government resources.

To make this change permanent, the Administration 

proposed legislation (“The Black Lung Consolidation of 

Administrative Responsibilities Act”) which was 

introduced in the Congress as H.R. 5542. The proposed 

legislation was passed by the Congress and enacted as 

Public Law 107-275 upon receipt of President Bush’s 

signature on November 2, 2002. The transfer of 

responsibility for Part B of the program from the Social 

Security Administration to the Department of Labor 

became effective on October 1, 2003. 

A joint audit report by both DOL and SSA found that 

DCMWC had improved claims maintenance services 

and overall customer satisfaction. Significant 

accomplishments related to the Part B transition and 

operations during FY 2002 include:

Completing more than 10,000 maintenance actions, on 

average less than one week from notification.

Managing the expenditure of more than $453 million in 

Part B benefits.

At the end of FY 2002, DCMWC offices were 

responsible for 65,274 active Part B claims.

Black Lung Disability Trust Fund

The Trust Fund is administered jointly by the Secretaries 

of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services. 

The Trust Fund was established by the Black Lung 

Benefits Revenue Act of 1977, to shift the responsibility 

for the payment of black lung benefit claims from the 

Federal Government to the coal industry. Those claims 

approved by SSA, under Part B of the BLBA, continue 

to be paid from the Federal Government's general 

revenues.

Trust Fund revenues consist of monies collected from 

the coal mine industry, under the provisions of the Black 

Lung Benefits Revenue Act of 1977, as amended, in the 

form of an excise tax on mined coal that is sold or used 

by producers; funds collected from responsible mine 

operators (RMOs) for monies they owe the Trust Fund; 

payments from various fines, penalties, and interest; 

refunds collected from claimants and beneficiaries for 

overpayments; and repayable advances obtained from 

Treasury's general fund when Trust Fund expenses 

exceed revenues. Total receipts of the Trust Fund in FY 

2002 were over $1.0 billion.

The major source of revenue to the Trust Fund is an 

excise tax on mined coal sold or used by producers. 

The tax is collected by the Internal Revenue Service 

(IRS), U.S. Department of the Treasury, and transferred 

to the Trust Fund on a monthly basis. In 1981, as an 

amendment to the IRS Code of 1954, the Black Lung 

Benefits Revenue Provisions added a temporary special 

tax, increasing the previous excise tax to $1.00 per ton 

for underground coal and $0.50 per ton on surface 

mined coal, with a cap of four percent of sales price.

In 1986, Congress passed the Consolidated Omnibus 

Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, which further 

increased excise tax rates by 10 percent and imposed a 

five-year moratorium on the accrual of interest on all 

repayable advances, which expired on September 30, 

1990. The rates (per ton) for underground and surface

mined coal were raised to $1.10 and $0.55 respectively, 

and the cap was increased to 4.4 percent of the sales 

price, for the period October 1, 1985, through December 

31, 1995. In December 1987, Public Law 100-203 

lengthened the duration of these increased tax rates to 

December 31, 2013, after which the rates will revert to 

their original levels of $0.50 underground, $0.25 

surface, and a limit of two percent of sales price. 

In FY 2002, the Trust Fund received a total of $566.6 

million in tax revenues. In comparison, the revenue 

levels in FY 2001 and FY 2000 were $522.2 million 

and $518.5 million, respectively.

An additional $3.2 million was collected from RMOs in 

interim benefits, fines, penalties, and interest during FY 

2002. These funds directly contribute to reducing the 

amount of repayable advances needed by the Trust 

Fund. 

Trust Fund expenditures are made for:

Monthly and medical benefits to eligible miners and/or 

their families for approved claims involving miners 

whose mine employment ended before 1970, or for 

claims in which no operator liability can be determined.

Administrative costs incurred in the operation of the 

Black Lung program.

Accrued interest on repayable advances from the 

Treasury.
26 27

Black Lung Benefits Act

Repayable advances are obtained from the U.S. 

Treasury when Trust Fund resources are not sufficient to 

meet program obligations. These advances are to be 

repaid to Treasury's General Fund with interest. Growth 

in the Fund's debt (advances outstanding) slowed 

considerably during 1986-90 due to a legislated 

moratorium on the accrual of interest on advances and 

larger than expected increases in tax revenues. Interest 

payments resumed in 1991, and by the end of FY 2002, 

the Trust Fund's cumulative debt to the U.S. Treasury 

was $7.719 billion. While tax receipts to the Trust Fund 

were sufficient to cover everyday operating costs and 

approximately $130 million of interest charges, 

repayable advances from the Treasury in the amount of 

$465 million were required to fund the remainder of the 

interest payments due on this debt for FY 2002.

For several years now the annual interest charges on the 

debt alone have exceeded benefit payments made by the 

Trust Fund. Without any action to restructure the 

existing debt, the Trust Fund will continue to borrow 

funds from the Treasury to make interest payments to 

service this growing debt and the Trust Fund is projected 

to never reach solvency. To address the continuing 

solvency issues, the Departments of Labor and Treasury 

jointly developed a proposed legislative package to 

retire the Trust Fund’s indebtedness, which was 

transmitted to the Congress on September 26, 2002; 

however, the Congress took no action on the proposed 

legislation prior to its adjournment.

Total Trust Fund disbursements during FY 2002 were 

$1.0 billion. These expenditures included $384.2 

million for benefits (income benefits of $320.0 million 

and medical benefits of $64.2 million), $595.6 million 

for interest payments, and $54.3 million to administer 

the program ($31.3 million in OWCP direct costs and 

$23.0 million for legal adjudication and various 

financial management and investigative support 

provided by the Office of the Solicitor, Office of 

Administrative Law Judges, Benefits Review Board 

(BRB), Office of the Inspector General, and the 

Department of the Treasury). 

Insurance/Self-Insurance

Section 423 of BLBA requires that each coal mine 

operator subject to the Act secure payment of any 

benefits liability by either qualifying as a self-insurer or 

insuring the risk with a stock or mutual company, an 

association, or a qualified fund or individual. Any coal 

mine operator failing to secure payment is subject to a 

civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each day of 

noncompliance. State workers' compensation laws also 

require coal mine operators to obtain insurance or 

qualify as a self-insured employer to cover employee 

benefit liabilities incurred due to occupational diseases 

that are covered by state law. If state workers' 

compensation is paid for pneumoconiosis, any Federal 

black lung benefit received for that disease would be 

offset or reduced by the amount of the state benefit on a 

dollar-for-dollar basis. As of September 30, 2002, there 

were 1,920 Federal black lung claims being offset due to 

concurrent state benefits.

Regulation of insurance carriers and the premium rates 

they charge has been and continues to be the 

responsibility of the states where they operate. Twentysix states set occupational disease premium rates for 

underground coal mine exposure. The rates vary on a 

state-by-state basis due to such factors as the population 

of miners in the state, the number of claims filed, and 

the cost of benefits.

 According to FY 2002 estimates by DOL's Mine Safety 

and Health Administration (MSHA), there were 976 

active coal mine operators subject to the requirements of 

the Act. The Secretary of Labor authorized 

approximately 360 coal mine operators and subsidiaries 

and/or affiliates to self-insure their obligations under the 

Act, with 78 operators currently self-insured.

The revised program regulations require DCMWC to 

provide insurance policy numbers to coal mine 

operators named in each claim, whenever possible. The 

purpose of this requirement is to reduce the exposure of 

the Trust Fund to liability when operators or insurers are 

liable. DCMWC initiated a project in May 2001 to add 

coverage information to its data base of 30,000 active 

and former coal mine operators, and this project was 

completed in April 2002.

Litigation

Courts of Appeals

During FY 2002, the courts of appeals issued 68 

decisions in cases arising under the Black Lung Benefits 

Act. Eighty-seven new appeals were filed. The 

following summarizes the most significant appellate 

decisions.

Upholding the Department's Revised Regulations. 

The Department promulgated revisions to the Black 

Lung program regulations that went into effect on 

January 19, 2001. The National Mining Association 

(and others) challenged the revisions by filing suit in 

district court. The district court upheld all of the 

regulations (Nat'l. Mining Ass'n. v. Chao, 160 F.Supp.2d 

47 (D.D.C. 2001), and the National Mining Association 

appealed. With the exception of one part of one 

regulation, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the 

revised regulations as valid for claims filed on or after 

the effective date of the revisions. Nat'l. Mining Ass'n. v. 

DOL, 292 F.3d 8439 (D.C. 2002). The regulations held 

valid include: those placing limitations on the amount

of medical evidence each party may submit; the 

definition of pneumoconiosis; the standards for 

determining total disability and death due to 

pneumoconiosis; the treating physician rule; subsequent 

claim rules; and presumptions governing payment of 

medical benefits and establishing operator liability. The 

Court held, however, that certain of the revised 

regulations, most notably those governing disabilitycausation and payment of medical benefits, were 

impermissibly retroactive when applied to claims filed 

prior to the effective date of the rules.

Modification: 30 U.S.C. § 932(a) incorporating 33 

U.S.C. § 922. In Old Ben Coal Co. v. Director, OWCP, 

292 F.3d 533 (7th Cir. 2002), the Seventh Circuit held 

that a modification request cannot be denied solely 

because it is based on evidence that could have been 

developed and presented at an earlier stage in the 

proceedings. Drawing upon case precedent broadly 

construing section 22's availability and use, the court 

reasoned that the statute articulates a preference for 

accuracy over finality in the decision reached. Thus, 

"whether requested by a miner or an employer, a 

modification request cannot be denied out of hand based 

solely on the number of times modification has been 

requested or on the basis that the evidence may have 

been available at an earlier stage in the proceeding." 

The court noted, however, that some circumstances—

such as an employer's abuse of the adjudicatory 

process—may be sufficient to overcome "the preference 

for accuracy" and justify an ALJ's refusal to modify.
28 29

Black Lung Benefits Act

sufficient evidence to show that the miner's more recent 

coal mine employers could not be held liable as 

responsible operators themselves. In reaching its 

conclusion, the court rejected the Director’s argument 

that neither a predecessor coal company nor its 

successor could be held liable where neither employed 

the miner for at least one year. Because "[t]he Act 

contemplates that the successor's identity will merge 

with that of its predecessor," the court held that the 

successor is liable if the aggregate time the miner 

worked for both companies totaled one year. 

Benefits Review Board

During FY 2002, DOL filed over 490 pleadings with the 

Benefits Review Board. The Board issued several 

decisions that significantly affect the Secretary’s 

administration of the benefits program.

Statute of Limitations. The Act's statute of limitations 

bars any claim filed more than three years after a 

medical determination of total disability due to 

pneumoconiosis is communicated to the miner. The

Weighing Treating Physicians' Opinions. In a series 

of three decisions, the Sixth Circuit rejected the coal 

companies' contention that the court had created an 

automatic presumption giving absolute deference to a 

miner's treating physician's opinion. Jericol Mining, 

Inc. v. Napier, 301 F.3d 703 (6th Cir. 2002); Wolf Creek 

Collieries v. Director, OWCP, 298 F.3d 511 (6th Cir. 

2002); Peabody Coal Co. v. Groves, 277 F.3d 829 (6th 

Cir. 2002). Instead, the court held that a treating 

physician's opinion must be credited and weighed 

against the remaining evidence of record. While 

acknowledging that the Department's recently 

promulgated rule addressing the proper weight to be 

given a treating physician's opinion (codified at 20 

C.F.R. § 718.104(d)(2001)) did not apply to the facts of 

these cases, the court nevertheless found the rule 

instructive in determining the level of deference such 

opinions should be accorded. The rule states, in relevant 

part, that a treating physician's opinion "may" be given 

"controlling weight" in "appropriate cases" depending 

on the opinion's "credibility. . . in light of its reasoning 

and documentation, other relevant evidence and the 

record as a whole."

Weighing CT scans. In Consolidation Coal Co. v. 

Director, OWCP [Stein], 294 F.3d 885 (7th Cir. 2002), 

the Seventh Circuit rejected the employer's argument 

that because a computerized tomography (CT) scan is 

the most sophisticated test for pneumoconiosis, a 

negative CT scan necessarily prohibits a finding of 

pneumoconiosis. The court held instead that even if a 

CT scan is negative, an ALJ may conclude from other 

evidence that a miner has pneumoconiosis. In reaching 

its conclusion, the court deferred to the Department's 

determination during recent rulemaking proceedings 

that "no single test or procedure, standing alone, is 

entitled to controlling weight as a matter of law." The 

Stein decision is particularly noteworthy because it is the 

first to examine in depth the role of CT scans in black 

lung benefits adjudications.

Calculating Length of Coal Mine Employment,

20 C.F.R. § 725.101(a)(32) (2002); 20 C.F.R. § 

725.493(b) (1999). Three courts addressed calculation 

of the length of a miner's coal mine employment for 

purposes of determining the proper responsible operator 

or qualifying for an entitlement-related presumption. 

Kentland Elkhorn Coal Corp. v. Hall, 287 F.3d 555 (6th 

Cir. 2002); Armco, Inc. v. Martin, 277 F.3d 468 (4th Cir. 

2002); Freeman United Coal Mining Co. v. Summers, 

272 F.3d 473 (7th Cir. 2001). Whether applying the 

revised regulations (Summers) or the older version 

(Martin and Hall), the courts consistently agreed that a 

year of coal mine employment is established by 

showing two facts: 1) the duration of the miner's 

employment with the operator spanned one calendar 

year (or partial periods totaling a year); and 2) the 

miner's employment during that year included at least 

125 working days (i.e. any day or part thereof the miner 

was paid for work as a miner). Applying this analysis, 

Hall held that an operator for whom the miner actually

worked fewer than 124 days (even assuming his 

employment spanned one calendar year) could not be 

held liable for benefits; Martin held that a coal mine 

operator who employed the miner for only six months 

(even though he actually worked more than 125 days) 

could not be the responsible operator; and Summers 

affirmed an ALJ's determination that the miner had 

established 15 years of employment and was thus 

entitled to a favorable presumption. 

Obstructive Lung Disease Related to Coal Mine 

Employment, 20 C.F.R. § 718.201. In Freeman 

United Coal Mining Co. v. Summers, 272 F.3d 473 (7th 

Cir. 2001), the Seventh Circuit upheld the ALJ's 

rejection of a physician's opinion that Summers' chronic 

obstructive lung disease did not arise out of coal mine 

employment. The Court noted that the Department had 

rejected that physician's underlying assumptions 

regarding the relationship between obstructive lung 

disease and coal mining in recent rulemaking 

proceedings. The court also upheld the ALJ's reliance 

on a different physician's opinion linking the disease 

with the miner's employment despite the fact that the 

physician refused to quantify, in percentage terms, the 

relative contributions of coal mine dust exposure, 

asthma and cigarette smoking to Summers' impairment. 

The court held "that doctors need not make such 

particularized findings. The ALJ needs only to be 

persuaded, on the basis of all available evidence, that 

pneumoconiosis is a contributing cause of the miner's 

disability." 

Successor Operators, 30 U.S.C. § 932(i). In Kentland 

Elkhorn Coal Corp. v. Hall, 287 F.3d 555 (6th Cir. 

2002), the Sixth Circuit imposed liability for benefits on 

the Trust Fund rather than the designated responsible 

operator because the Director had not developed
Responsible Coal Mine Operator Beneficiaries in

Pay Status at End of Fiscal Year	

 Monthly	 6,463 6,226

 Medical Benefits Only 1,960 1,733

Number of Employees

(FTE Staffing Used)	 208 212

Administrative Expenditures** $ 30.3 M $ 31.3 M

Total Compensation and

Benefit Payments***	 $ 396.9 M	 $ 384.2 M

Trust Fund Beneficiaries in Pay Status at End of Fiscal Year

 Monthly	 48,342 44,964

 Medical Benefits Only	 7,976 6,300

30 31

Black Lung Benefits Act

*Reflects expenditures for Part C claims only; Part B data is published in

the Social Security Administration Bulletin. 

**Direct administrative costs to OWCP only; excludes DOL support

costs of $22.0 million in FY 2001 and $23.0 million in FY 2002, respectively.

***Excludes collections from responsible coal mine operators for benefits

paid by Trust Fund on an interim basis, refunds for OWCP administrative

costs paid, and other miscellaneous reimbursements.

Black Lung Benefits Act*

Board has long held that the limitations provision 

applies only to a miner's initial claim, and not to any 

subsequent claim. In Furgerson v. Jericol Mining, Inc., 

22 Black Lung Rep. 1-216 (2002), the Board interpreted 

the Sixth Circuit's decision in Tennessee Consolidated 

Coal Company v. Kirk, 264 F.3d 602 (6th Cir. 2001), as 

holding that a medical determination of totally disabling 

pneumoconiosis developed in connection with a miner's 

prior, unsuccessful claim for benefits may be sufficient 

to commence the limitations period, and thus preclude 

any claim filed more than three years after that 

determination. The Director had argued that the 

language in Kirk upon which the Board relied is noncontrolling dicta.

Withdrawal of Claims. In Clevenger v. Mary Helen 

Coal Company, 22 Black Lung Rep. 1-193 (2002), the 

Benefits Review Board held unanimously that a black 

lung claimant may not withdraw his application for 

benefits after an effective decision has been issued. 

Withdrawal, if approved, results in the application being 

treated as if it were never filed. The Board adopted the 

Director's view and held that terminating a claimant's 

right to withdraw after issuance of an effective decision 

protects all parties' rights. It protects the rights and 

defenses gained by a coal mine operator that 

successfully defended the claim as well as the right of a 

claimant to withdraw a premature claim without penalty 

early in the litigation process.

Settlement of Claims. The Act incorporates numerous 

provisions from the Longshore and Harbor Workers' 

Compensation Act. Because the Longshore Act 

provision that authorizes settlement of claims was not 

incorporated, the Board has long held that settlement of 

black lung claims is prohibited under the Act. In Ramey 

v. Triple R Coal Company, 22 BLR 1-122 (2002), aff’d, 

326 F. 3d 474 (4th cir. 2003), the Board held that an 

incorporated provision of the Longshore Act that bars 

"assignment, release or commutation" of benefits 

"except as provided by this chapter" does not 

incorporate by reference the Longshore Act's settlement 

provision. The Board accepted the Director's view that 

the phrase "this chapter" referred to the chapter 

containing the Black Lung Act and not that containing 

the Longshore Act.

Discovery – Requests for Admissions. The OALJ 

rules governing pre-trial discovery apply to black lung 

claims unless inconsistent with a program regulation. 

Under a discovery method known as a request for 

admissions, one party may ask another to admit the truth 

of any factual matter involved in the litigation. A 

request not specifically denied is deemed admitted. In 

Johnson v. Royal Coal Company, 22 Black Lung Rep. 

1-132 (2002), rev’d, 326 F. 3d 421 (4th cir. 2003), the 

claimant argued that the responsible coal mine operator 

conceded his entitlement to benefits when it failed to 

answer a request to admit the claimant met the Act's 

eligibility requirements. A majority of the Board held 

that the operator's inadvertent discovery admissions 

were not enforceable because the operator had properly 

contested the claimant's entitlement pursuant to the 

black lung program regulations, which govern when in 

conflict with the OALJ rules.

Enforcement

The Department received a decision in the first case ever 

brought to enforce the Black Lung Benefits Act's civil 

money penalty for operating a coal mine without federal 

black lung insurance. Director, OWCP v. Alabama 

Land and Mineral Corp., 2001-BCP-1 (June 21, 2002) 

(unpublished). The administrative law judge found that 

the Alabama Land and Mineral Corporation operated 

coal mines without insurance for over three years. The 

judge declined to impose any penalty against the 

company, however, because he found "mitigating 

circumstances" under 20 C.F.R. § 725.495(d) (2000). 

He concluded that the company no longer operated coal 

mines, was being liquidated under Chapter 7 of the 

Bankruptcy Code, and numbered some of its former 

employees among its creditors. The judge did not find 

"mitigating circumstances" present with respect to the 

corporate officers, however, who may also be held liable 

for a civil money penalty under the Act. Finding that the 

president and secretary had served for two years during 

which the company operated coal mines without 

insurance, the ALJ imposed the maximum penalty of 

$1,000 per day against them jointly, totaling $730,000.

 FY 2001 FY 2002
Longshore and

Harbor Workers’ 

Compensation Act

I

32 33

services to longshore, harbor and other maritime 

workers who are injured during their employment or 

who contract an occupational disease related to 

employment. Survivor benefits also are provided if the 

work-related injury or disease causes the employee's 

death. These benefits are paid directly by an authorized 

self-insured employer, through an authorized insurance 

carrier, or in particular circumstances, by an industry 

financed Special Fund.

In addition, LHWCA covers a variety of other 

employees through the following extensions to the Act:

The Defense Base Act of August 16, 1941, provided the 

benefits of LHWCA to employees on overseas military, 

air, or naval bases or other areas under a public works 

contract performed by contractors with agencies of the 

United States Government.

 ntroduction

Enacted in 1927, the Longshore and 

Harbor Workers' Compensation Act 

(LHWCA) compensates for lost wages, 

medical benefits, and rehabilitation

The Nonappropriated Fund Instrumentalities Act of June 

19, 1952, covers civilian employees in post exchanges, 

service clubs, etc. of the Armed Forces.

The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of August 7, 

1953, extended Longshore benefits to employees of 

firms working on the outer continental shelf of the 

United States engaged in exploration for and 

development of natural resources, such as off-shore 

drilling enterprises.

The District of Columbia Workmen's Compensation Act 

(DCCA), passed by Congress on May 17, 1928, 

extended the coverage provided by the Longshore Act 

to private employment in the District of Columbia. 

Since the District of Columbia passed its own workers' 

compensation act effective July 26, 1982, OWCP 

handles claims only for injuries prior to that date.

The original law, entitled the Longshoremen's and 

Harbor Workers' Compensation Act, provided coverage 

to certain maritime employees injured while working 

over navigable waters. These workers had been held 

excluded from state workers' compensation coverage by 

the Supreme Court (Southern Pacific Co. v. Jensen, 244 

U.S. 205, 1917).

Disability compensation and medical benefits paid by 

insurers and self-insurers under LHWCA and its 

extensions totaled approximately $544.4 million in 

Calendar Year (CY) 2001, a 3.0 percent increase 

compared to CY 2000.
34 35

Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act

Operations

In Fiscal Year (FY) 2002, total expenditures 

for program operations and the overall 

administration of LHWCA were $24.8 

million, of which $9.9 million were the 

direct costs of OWCP. The remaining $14.9 

million were the costs of legal, audit, and 

investigative support provided by the Office 

of Administrative Law Judges (OALJ), 

Benefits Review Board (BRB), Office of the 

Solicitor, and the Office of the Inspector 

General. 

At year’s end, the Division of Longshore 

and Harbor Workers' Compensation 

(DLHWC) employed 105 people in the 

national office and 11 district offices.

During FY 2002, 22,293 lost-time injuries were 

reported under the Act by approximately 330 selfinsured employers and 410 insurance carriers. At year's 

end, 14,020 maritime and other workers were in 

compensation payment status.

Conferences and Appeals

A major function of the Longshore claims examiner is 

the resolution of disputed issues that arise in claims. 

While not a judge or hearing officer, a claims examiner 

does function as a mediator in informal proceedings 

designed to help the parties involved reach amicable 

agreements and thereby avoid the time and expense 

involved in formal litigation. In FY 2002, the district 

offices conducted 2,957 informal conferences that were 

designed to establish the facts in each case, define the 

disputed issues and the positions of the parties in respect 

of those issues, and encourage the voluntary resolution 

of those issues by means of agreement and/or 

compromise. At the conclusion of each informal 

conference, a recommendation for resolving the issues

and disposing of the claim is made by the claims 

examiner. If either the claimant or the employer (or 

insurance carrier) does not agree with the 

recommendations made and requests a formal hearing, 

the case is referred by the Longshore district director to 

the OALJ. Decisions issued by administrative law 

judges are appealable to the BRB whose final decisions 

(except for those involving the Defense Base Act 

(DBA)) are then subject to review by the appropriate 

United States Court of Appeals. Initial review of BRB 

decisions involving the DBA should be filed in the 

appropriate United States District Court.

Constituent Services

DLHWC provides technical assistance to the maritime 

industry and the workers whom the law is designed to 

serve. Since the passage of the original Act, 

administrative personnel have helped claimants file and 

process injury reports and claims. DLHWC carries on 

this tradition with program staff helping covered 

workers and their dependents process claims and 

required reports and get information on medical and 

vocational rehabilitation. This aid is not a monetary 

benefit to the claimant, but it is a valuable asset to an 

injured worker attempting to seek compensation for an 

injury.

Longshore district offices also conduct seminars for 

union members and officials, and for organizations 

representing industry management. The offices 

regularly schedule several seminars each year to which 

employer and employee representatives are invited.

Numbered notices are used by the national office to 

disseminate information to 740 insurance carriers and 

self-insured employers.

Accomplishments

ADP Systems/Automation

In FY 2002, the Longshore program implemented 

several enhancements to its automated Longshore Case 

Management System (LCMS) including:

Finalizing the LCMS Centralization Project. The 12 

separate regional LCMS databases will be centralized 

into one database in November and December, 2002. 

This change will allow faster access, easier ad-hoc 

reporting, advanced back-up security, and better 

performance reporting along with enhanced security 

and recovery ability.

Enhancing the Longshore program’s internet site. 

DLHWC has added significant new information to its 

website, including on-line access to its revised 

Procedures Manual, general advice about the coverage 

requirement with links to each district office, lists of 

authorized insurers and self-insured employers, and 

briefs addressing the Director’s position in case law.

Improving the automation of Longshore performance 

measures. The Longshore program’s outcome 

performance measure for the Government Performance 

and Results Act (GPRA) was automated, utilizing the 

LCMS as the basis for entering and reporting data. New 

codes were developed for claims examiners to measure 

the time it takes for dispute resolution in the program, 

allowing detailed case review and performance 

monitoring.

 FISCAL YEAR

Longshore

Benefit Expenditures 

IN MILLIONS OF CONSTANT DOLLARS*

 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

$400

$300

$200

$100

$0

*Current dollars deflated by CPI-W (urban wage earners and clerical workers, U.S. city 

average, all items), 1982-1984=100.

**Includes total industry compensation and benefit payments under LHWCA and its 

extensions as reported on a calendar year basis.
36 37

Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act

Claims Management Initiatives

During FY 2002, DLHWC focused on improving its 

claims management and dispute resolution services.

The primary focus of these efforts was on developing a 

GPRA outcome measure and setting a baseline for 

performance improvement. This has been 

accomplished, although data clean-up has briefly set 

back the baseline development. 

The district offices, utilizing Mediation Training 

provided to all claims examiners, promoted the use of 

mediation services for resolving disputes informally, and 

applied specific mediation skills and techniques during 

informal dispute resolution interventions.

Compliance Assistance Plan

Since DLHWC has regulatory responsibility, a plan to 

assist employers in understanding and complying with 

the obligation to acquire Longshore coverage when 

appropriate was initiated during FY 2002. The plan 

provides for ongoing regional needs assessments, and 

targeted educational seminars and technical assistance 

provided from the DLHWC district offices.

Customer Survey Redesign

Until recently, the DLHWC conducted written surveys 

of its program participants to measure customer 

satisfaction with Longshore program services. The 

response to the mailed surveys was not helpful, as the 

return rate was very low and the individual responses 

were frequently contradictory and unclear. To provide 

the program with more reliable, insightful, and useful 

feedback, DLHWC has contracted with the University 

of Michigan to participate in the American Customer 

Satisfaction Index. This standardized survey instrument 

is used by many public and private organizations to 

measure customer satisfaction, and allows not only 

individual programmatic assessment, but also interprogrammatic comparisons. The results of the first 

survey will serve as a baseline for future improvements 

and measures.

Insurance Industry Oversight

During FY 2002, the insurance industry experienced 

serious economic impacts resulting from a series of 

negative influences. Included among these was 

insufficient premium revenues dating from the early to 

mid-1990s, recession impacts on investments, higher 

than anticipated claims arising from old policies 

covering asbestosis and other industrial illnesses, and the 

costs of the September 11, 2001 terrorism attacks. The 

result of these financial pressures has been a number of

insolvencies as well as declining financial stability 

ratings in the industry. In response to these impacts, the 

Longshore program initiated steps to secure the financial 

integrity and security of the system by:

Initiating the rule promulgation process to address 

insurance company security deposit requirements.

Improving DLHWC processes for handling 

insolvencies to ensure seamless benefit delivery to 

claimants.

Strengthening the review process of applications for 

authorization to participate in the Longshore program.

Increasing the security deposit requirements for 

authorized companies that exhibit indications of 

weakened financial security.

Rehabilitation Reforms

Completion of a major rehabilitation system study in 

FY 2002 was the prelude to planning for specific 

programmatic enhancements. The study surveyed 

participating claimants, service providers, and DLHWC 

staff to obtain insight and suggestions for improving this 

important service. The proposed changes include:

Improved client recruitment efforts.

Earlier and clearer communications to promote the 

program.

Automated referrals.

A sharper focus on job placement outcomes.

A GPRA outcome measure.

These improvements to the Longshore rehabilitation 

program will be implemented during fiscal 2003.

Management of the Special Fund

The Special Fund under the Longshore Act was 

established in the Treasury of the United States pursuant 

to section 44 of the Act and is administered by the 

national office of DLHWC.

Proceeds of the fund are used for payments under 

section 10(h) of the Act for annual adjustments in 

compensation for permanent total disability or death that 

occurred prior to the effective date of the 1972 

amendments, under section 8(f) for second injury 

claims, under section 18(b) for cases involving 

employer insolvency, under sections 39(c) and 8(g) for 

providing rehabilitation assistance to persons covered 

under the Act, and under section 7(e) to pay the cost of 

medical examinations.

The Special Fund is financed through fines and 

penalties levied under the Act; payment by employers of 

$5,000 for each death case when it is determined that 

there are no survivors eligible for the benefits; interest 

payments on Fund investments; and payment of annual 

assessments by authorized insurance carriers and selfinsurers. Fines, penalties, and death benefit levies 

constitute a small portion of the total amount paid into 

the Special Fund each year. The largest single source of 

money for the fund is the annual assessment.
38 39

Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act

Under section 44(c)(2) of the Act, the expenses of the 

fund are estimated at the beginning of each CY and each 

carrier and self-insurer makes prorated payments into 

the fund. Payments are based on a comparison of the 

total compensation payments each made on risks 

covered by the Act and the total of such payments made 

by all carriers and self-insurers under the Act in the prior 

year, and a comparison of payments under section 8(f) 

attributable to the carrier/self-insurer and the total of 

such payments during the preceding CY. There is a 

separate fund under the District of Columbia 

Workmen's Compensation Act that also is administered 

by OWCP. Payments to and from this fund apply only 

to the DCCA.

The LHWCA Fund paid $131.7 million in benefits in 

FY 2002, of which $119.7 million went for second 

injury (section 8(f)) claims. FY 2002 expenditures of 

the DCCA Special Fund totaled $11.4 million, of which 

$10.2 million went for second injury cases.

Litigation

The following summarizes the significant decisions 

issued in the Courts of Appeals during FY 2002 

involving provisions of the LHWCA and its extensions.

Attorneys' Fees: Fee Shifting. In Weaver v. Ingalls 

Shipbuilding, Inc., 282 F.3d 357 (5th Cir. 2002), the 

Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held that section 28’s feeshifting provision of the LHWCA entitles a successful 

claimant’s counsel to a reasonable fee against the liable 

employer, for services performed after the employer’s 

timely declination to pay (within thirty days of the 

employer’s receipt of formal notice of the claim). While 

the panel rejected the employer’s argument that it was 

only responsible for the claimant’s attorney’s fees 

incurred after the thirty day period lapsed, the panel, 

believing itself bound by prior precedent, also rejected 

the Director’s position that the employer was liable for 

all of a successful litigant’s reasonable attorney’s fees 

regardless of when the claimant’s attorney incurred the 

fees.

Average Weekly Wage: Per Diem. In Custom Ship 

Interiors v. Roberts, 300 F.3d 510 (4th Cir. 2002), the 

Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the 

Director's position that per diem amounts paid to 

claimant for food and lodging was nothing more than a 

disguised wage, and therefore should be included in the 

calculation of claimant's average weekly wage for 

purposes of determining claimant's disability benefits 

under the LHWCA. 

Coverage: Situs. The United States Court of Appeals 

for the Eleventh Circuit in Bianco v. Georgia Pacific 

Corp., 304 F.3d 1053 (11th Cir. 2002), affirmed the 

finding that the claimant was not injured on a covered 

situs and rejected the Director's argument in favor of 

coverage. Claimant was injured in an area (the knifeoperating department of Georgia Pacific’s sheetrock 

manufacturing plant) that the ALJ found had no 

maritime function. Thus, the court held it was not a

covered situs within the meaning of section 3(a) of the 

LHWCA. The Eleventh Circuit disagreed with the 

Director’s position that because the plant is separated 

from a river by only slivers of city and county property, 

and unloads gypsum directly from ships, the entire plant 

should be deemed a covered “adjoining area” within the 

meaning of the LHWCA, even if portions of the plant 

are not used for maritime activity. While the Eleventh 

Circuit panel acknowledged the Director’s concern 

about workers “walking in and out of coverage,” it held 

that adoption of the Director’s view of situs would read 

out of the LHWCA the requirement that the adjoining 

area "be customarily used by an employer in loading, 

unloading, repairing, dismantling, or building a vessel."

Credit Doctrine: Settlements. The Ninth Circuit 

Court of Appeals, in Alexander v. Triple A Machine 

Shop, 297 F.3d 805 (9th Cir. 2002), reversed the Board 

and agreed with the Director that one of the several 

potentially liable employers under the LHWCA is not 

entitled to a credit for amounts received by the claimant 

in settlements with other potentially liable employers. 

The court agreed that the Director’s argument was 

supported by the plain language of the statute, as well as 

by policy considerations similar to those relied on by the 

unanimous Supreme Court in rejecting such credit in the 

context of joint maritime tortfeasors in McDermott, Inc. 

v. AmClyde, 511 U.S. 202 (1994). The non-settling 

defendant has no cause to complain, since it is required 

to pay exactly what it would have if no settlements had 

been reached with the others. Furthermore, the 

allowance of credit would virtually foreclose 

settlements.

Last Employer Doctrine: Merger of Hearing Loss 

Claims. The Ninth Circuit in Stevedoring Services of 

America v. Benjamin, 297 F.3d 797 (9th Cir. 2002), held 

that the "last employer doctrine" did not provide a basis 

for treating claims for hearing loss that were based on 

two valid audiograms performed at different times and 

demonstrating a measurable deterioration in hearing 

ability, as one, undifferentiated injury. Under the "last 

employer doctrine," the employer during the last 

employment in which the claimant was exposed to 

injurious stimuli, prior to the date claimant became 

aware he was suffering from an occupational disease 

arising out of his employment, is liable for the full 

amount. The Court agreed with the Director that an

 FISCAL YEAR

DCCA LHWCA

 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

*Current dollars deflated by CPI-W (urban wage earners and clerical workers, U.S. city average, all

items), 1982-1984=100.

$100

$80

$60

$40

$20

$0

LHWCA and DCCA

Special Funds’ Expenditures, 

FY 1993-FY 2002

IN MILLIONS OF CONSTANT DOLLARS*
40 41

Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act

Number of Employees

(FTE Staffing Used) 106 105

Administrative Expenditures* $ 9.8 M $ 9.9 M

Lost-Time Injuries Reported 	 23,480 22,293

Total Compensation Paid** $675.2 M $692.2 M

 Wage-Loss and Survivor Benefits	 $511.1 M $523.9 M

 Medical Benefits	 $164.0 M $168.3 M

Sources of Compensation Paid

 Insurance Companies** $249.7 M $236.7 M

 Self-Insured Employers** $279.0 M $307.7 M

 LHWCA Special Fund $133.4 M $131.7 M

 	

 DCCA Special Fund $ 11.3 M $ 11.4 M

 DOL Appropriation $ 3.0 M $ 2.9 M

*Direct administrative costs to OWCP only; excludes DOL support costs of $15.2 

million in FY 2001 and $14.9 million in FY 2002.

**Figures are for CY 2000 and CY 2001, respectively. Note: Total compensation 

paid does not equal the sum of the sources of compensation due to the different 

time periods (CY v. FY) by which the various data are reported. For Special Fund 

assessment billing purposes as required by section 44 of LHWCA, compensation 

and medical benefit payments made by insurance carriers and self-insured 

employers under the Act are reported to DOL for the previous calendar year.

Longshore and Harbor Workers’

Compensation Act

employer who is liable under the application of the "last 

employer doctrine" should not be able to escape liability 

just because a second employer also can be assigned 

liability under the same doctrine, for a later, separate 

injury. 

Post-Injury Wage Earning Capacity: Unscheduled 

Awards. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed 

with the Director's position in Sestich v. Long Beach 

Container Terminal, 289 F.3d 1157 (9th Cir. 2002), and 

rejected the petitioner's contention that his compensation 

should be calculated based on the difference between his 

current actual earnings and the hypothetical amount he 

could be earning absent his injury. The Ninth Circuit 

agreed that claimant's post-injury "wage-earning 

capacity" under the LHWCA is equal to his actual postinjury earnings, not a hypothetical "wage-earning 

capacity" absent the injury, (i.e., what he would have 

received in a tort recovery), and that he is entitled to 

two-thirds of the difference between his "wage-earning 

capacity" and his pre-injury "average weekly wage." 

Because his post-injury "wage earning capacity" 

exceeded his pre-injury "average weekly wages," the 

Ninth Circuit held that he was not entitled to any 

compensation. 

Reimbursement Pursuant to Section 14(j). The 

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit 

agreed with the Director's position in Cooper/T. Smith 

Stevedoring Co. v. Liuzza, 293 F.3d 741 (5th Cir. 2002). 

The issue before the Court was one of first impression: 

whether 33 U.S.C. § 914(j) entitles an employer to be 

reimbursed for an overpayment made on a deceased

the hearing by claimant’s attorney did not amount to a 

withdrawal of the claim for a specified period because 

the ALJ did not remand the case to the district director to 

determine whether the regulatory requirements for 

withdrawal of a claim had been met. Furthermore, the 

court held it was an error to award attorney’s fees under 

section 28(b) of the LHWCA because no informal 

conference was held before a district director, but upheld 

the award on the alternate theory advanced by the 

Director, that attorney’s fees were appropriate under 

section 28(a) since the employer refused to pay 

compensation following the claim filed in February 

1995, and that voluntary payments made before the 

claim was filed were irrelevant to the issue. 

Third-Party Settlements: Calculation of Offset 

Under Section 33(f). In Gilliland v. E.J. Bartells Co., 

270 F.3d 1259 (9th Cir. 2002), the Ninth Circuit Court 

of Appeals held that where a claimant entered into a 

third-party settlement that was structured to include an 

annuity, the employer’s offset should be equal to the 

actual value of the monthly payments received from the 

annuity and arise periodically as the payments are 

actually made. In other words, the employer's offset is 

not a one-time credit for the purchase price of an annuity 

discounted to present value, that a third party defendant 

purchased to fund their obligations to make monthly 

payments. The Director’s argument that a claimant’s 

entitlement to LHWCA compensation should not be 

offset unless and until such payments are, in fact, 

received from an alternative source was based on the 

statutory language as well as policy considerations. The 

court ruled that the Director was entitled to full 

deference for his interpretation because it had been 

presented in the administrative proceedings below and 

was thus not a post hoc rationale for agency action, but 

was instead, itself agency action.

worker’s disability claim by collecting out of unpaid 

installments of compensation due to his widow on her 

death benefits claim. The Director argued that neither 

the explicit terms of section 14(j) nor the spirit of the Act 

or the equities of the circumstances warranted 

reimbursement to the employer. In light of Fifth Circuit 

precedent addressing similar issues and the deference 

owed to the Director's interpretations of the Act's 

provisions, the court held that the employer was liable 

for the full amount of the widow's death benefits. 

Special Fund Liability: Multiple Injuries. In Matson 

Terminals, Inc. v. Berg, 279 F.3d 694 (9th Cir. 2001), the 

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the 

Director’s position that an employee who injured both 

knees as a result of work-related cumulative injuries was 

considered to have suffered two discrete injuries under 

the LHWCA. The court, therefore, concluded that an 

employer who was granted section 8(f) relief from its 

liability for each of those injuries was liable for two 

separate 104-week periods of disability payments before 

the Special Fund assumed liability for the remainder of 

the payment on the awards. The court rejected the 

employer’s argument that if multiple injuries arise from 

a single traumatic accident or event, they should be 

considered a single injury, observing that the statute 

provides for separate compensation awards in the event 

of injury to both knees without regard to the events 

giving rise to their occurrence.

Statute of Limitations: Protective Filing. The United 

States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Pool Co. 

v. Cooper, 274 F.3d 173 (5th Cir. 2002), agreed with 

arguments presented on behalf of the Director and 

rejected the employer’s argument that the claim was 

time-barred. Noting that the claim related to a specific 

injury for which the employee was undergoing 

continuing treatment, the court held that the claim 

properly sought compensation for anticipated future 

wage loss as a result of the injury. The court also held 

that the Board erred in holding that statements made at

 FY 2001 FY 2002
Energy Employees

Occupational Illness 

Compensation Program Act

I

42 43

every facet of industrial production from mining to 

weapon assembly and involves some of the most 

dangerous materials known. Over the past year, the 

Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness 

Compensation (DEEOIC) has committed to ensuring 

that workers from these facilities who became ill as a 

result of their employment receive timely compensation 

and medical care. 

During Fiscal Year (FY) 2002, the DEEOIC provided 

over 4,800 employees or their families with benefit 

payments totaling approximately $351 million. In 

addition, the program paid bills covering $3.8 million in 

medical expenses associated with treatment of accepted 

medical conditions. 

Funding

For FY 2002, the Department of Labor (DOL) spent 

$35.1 million to administer EEOICPA, which supported 

191 full-time equivalent staff. Additional funding ($37.5 

million) was transferred to support the activities of the 

Department of Health and Human Services, National 

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

 ntroduction

From the early 1940’s to the present, over

350 facilities have been linked to the 

production of atomic weapons. The process of 

building atomic weapons touched almost

The DOL costs covered various activities including 

direct expenses by DEEOIC for administration, and 

contribution to the operation of ten Resource Centers. 

The NIOSH portion included funding for the dose 

reconstruction process, development of regulations, and 

support of the Advisory Board on Radiation and

Worker Health. 

Benefits and Services

The Energy Employees Occupational Illness 

Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended 

(EEOICPA), 42 U.S.C. § 7384 et seq., is administered 

by four Federal agencies, as mandated by Executive 

Order 13179. As the primary administrative agency, 

DOL administers the claims adjudication and 

compensation program as provided under Part B of the 

EEOICPA. The Department of Health and Human 

Services (HHS) is tasked with calculation of radiation 

dose estimates that are then used to determine the 

probability that a cancer was caused by radiation 

exposure. The Department of Energy (DOE) is 

responsible for assisting DOL and HHS by providing 

relevant documentation on worker employment history 

and exposure data. In addition, DOE is responsible 

under Part D of EEOICPA for the administration of a 

program designed to assist DOE contractor employees 

in state workers’ compensation proceedings for 

conditions caused by exposure to toxic substances 

during their employment. The Department of Justice 

(DOJ) provides information needed by DOL to process 

claims for the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act 

(RECA) Section 5 award recipients seeking 

supplemental benefits under EEOICPA.
44 45

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act

The goal of DEEOIC is to deliver benefits to eligible 

workers of DOE, its contractors and subcontractors, or 

to certain survivors of such individuals. This includes 

delivering benefits to certain beneficiaries of Section 5 

of RECA. The EEOICPA provides for lump-sum 

compensation payments of up to $150,000 and medical 

benefits to covered workers who became seriously ill as 

a result of exposure to radiation, beryllium or silica in 

the production or testing of nuclear weapons and, where 

applicable, survivors of such workers. For individuals 

found eligible for benefits for illnesses covered under 

Section 5 of the RECA and, where applicable, their 

survivors, the EEOICPA provides a supplemental 

payment of $50,000 and medical benefits. 

Under EEOICPA, there are two distinct groups of 

claimants: living employees and survivors of deceased 

employees. Case files are created based on the name of 

a living or deceased employee. For each employee case 

file, there must be at least one registered claimant. This 

can be either the employee filing a claim on his/her own 

behalf or a survivor filing on behalf of a deceased 

employee. In some instances, there can be multiple 

survivor claimants for a single deceased employee. In 

FY 2002, a total of 18,267 case files were created for 

living or deceased employees. From that total of 

employee case files, the DEEOIC has registered 23,674 

claims from either an employee filing on his/her own 

behalf or survivors of a deceased employee.

Operations

The DEEOIC has four District Offices that process 

incoming claims. These offices are located in 

Cleveland, Ohio; Denver, Colorado; Jacksonville, 

Florida; and Seattle, Washington. The principle function 

of the district office is to review claims to determine 

eligibility for benefits. Once the district office receives 

a claim, the claims examiner (CE) reviews the evidence 

submitted. In certain situations, it is necessary to send a 

case file to NIOSH to undergo a dose reconstruction. A 

dose reconstruction is a process by which NIOSH 

determines the level of exposure to radiation an 

individual worker received during the course of his/her 

employment at a covered facility. The outcome of the 

dose reconstruction is then used to determine the 

probability that a diagnosed cancer was as likely as not 

caused by exposure to radiation in the performance of 

duty. In FY 2002, the district offices forwarded 8,236 

cases to NIOSH for dose reconstruction.

Once appropriate development of a case file has been 

completed, a recommended decision is issued. The 

recommended decision is a preliminary finding of the 

district office, and includes a discussion of the evidence, 

factual findings and conclusions of law. Each claimant 

also is given the ability to challenge the findings 

contained in the recommended decision before the Final 

Adjudication Branch (FAB). In FY 2002, district 

offices issued 12,825 claim-level recommended 

decisions.

The FAB maintains a central office in Washington D.C., 

as well as offices collocated with each district office. 

The function of the FAB is to review each 

recommended decision to ensure it adheres to the legal 

requirements enumerated under the EEOICPA and that 

it was issued with proper regard to established program 

policy and procedure. Challenges brought forth by 

claimants also are considered by way of review of the 

written record or oral hearings. Oral hearings are 

scheduled by FAB and are conducted at public locations

near the claimant. After due consideration of any 

argument or evidence presented by the claimant, the 

FAB issues a final decision. The final decision is a 

written document that discusses the finding of FAB and 

addresses any specific challenge brought forth by a 

claimant. Subsequent to the issuance of a final decision, 

the claimant may request that the decision be reopened 

or reconsidered. After exhausting these administrative 

review opportunities, the claimant may then seek 

judicial review through district court. 

For FY 2002, FAB issued 8,358 claim-level final 

decisions. Of that total, 5,199 were approvals and 3,159 

were denials. A case may be denied for various reasons. 

 The most common reason for denial is that a claimant 

makes a claim for a condition that is not covered under 

Part B of EEOICPA. Examples of commonly claimed 

non-covered conditions include the following: lung 

conditions other than cancer or chronic beryllium 

disease; heart failure; asbestosis; chronic obstructive 

pulmonary disease; emphysema; renal conditions; 

benign tumors; and hearing loss. Other reasons for 

denial of coverage under the EEOICPA include: the 

employee did not work at a covered DOE facility, 

atomic weapons employer or beryllium vendor during a 

covered time period; the claimed condition (other than 

cancer) is unrelated to employment; the alleged survivor 

is not an eligible beneficiary; it has been determined 

(through dose reconstruction) that the probability that 

the cancer is related to employment is less than 50 

percent and thus there is no eligibility; or the medical 

evidence is insufficient to establish entitlement.

Services to Claimants

In FY 2002, DEEOIC continued its outreach efforts to 

advise individuals and families of the benefits provided 

under the EEOICPA. Business processes were 

developed to increase customer satisfaction and 

streamline administration of the program. 

DEEOIC and DOE jointly sponsor ten Resource 

Centers located near large nuclear weapon production 

and testing facilities. These centers assist employees 

and survivors in applying for benefits under the 

EEOICPA. Not only do these centers provide valuable 

information about the claims process to claimants, they 

also assist the claimant in completing the necessary 

forms and transmitting documents to the DEEOIC 

district offices. In FY 2002, claims filed through 

Resource Centers generated 13,273 claims.

To reach potential claimants who do not reside close to a 

Resource Center, the DEEOIC continued to schedule 

traveling resource center meetings. Meeting locations 

are determined based on factors such as proximity to 

large DOE production sites and public inquiries to the 

DEEOIC. In FY 2002, traveling resource centers 

conducted one to three day meetings at twelve locations 

around the country. Prior to each meeting, various 

media outlets such as radio and newspaper are utilized 

to advertise the scheduling of a traveling resource center. 

 The DEEOIC also uses trade group organizations and 

group mailings to advise local residents of the traveling 

resource center schedules. For FY 2002, claims filed 

through the traveling resource centers generated

1,288 claims.
46 47

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act

In FY 2002, the DEEOIC website was updated and 

expanded. This website provides Energy employees, 

claimants, potential claimants, and other interested 

parties with up-to-date information on the DEEOIC, 

including its mission, the regulations governing the 

program, policy and procedures, claim reporting forms, 

intake center locations and hours, town hall meeting 

locations and times, a list of covered work sites prepared 

by DOE, press releases and news links about the 

program, and toll free hot-line numbers where 

additional information and assistance can be obtained. 

Weekly content updates to the site were established with 

the posting of medical and compensation benefit 

statistics along with data on the status of the program’s 

claims processing activities. 

In September 2002, the Telephone Management System 

(TMS) was installed in DEEOIC district offices. TMS 

enables users to log and track all incoming and outgoing 

calls received on EEOICPA cases. TMS is fully 

integrated into the Energy Case Management System 

(ECMS). When users log into ECMS, their pending 

calls due for that day automatically pop up for review 

and action. The system also allows phone call update, 

reassignment for workload distribution, and on-line 

management and reporting of pending and completed 

calls. The reporting functionality, in particular, allows 

for proactive management of calls to ensure calls are 

returned within the required two-day standard.

Interagency Cooperation

Given that the administration of the EEOICPA is shared 

jointly among several agencies including the 

Departments of Labor, Energy, Health and Human 

Services and Justice, regular meetings and discussions 

are held to coordinate claim adjudication and 

processing.

In FY 2002, the following interagency meetings were 

conducted regularly:

Monthly or bimonthly meetings and discussions 

between the Deputy Secretaries of Labor, HHS and 

DOE. The purpose of these meetings is to coordinate 

agency-level activities related to the administration of 

the EEOICPA, such as sharing of electronic data; 

employment verification processes; work-flow between 

DOL and NIOSH, NIOSH and DOE, DOL and DOE; 

joint congressional responses; potential statutory 

amendments; and publishing of new regulations. 

Weekly Interagency Teleconferences. Participants 

include the directors of the DEEOIC (DOL), Office of 

Worker Advocacy (DOE), National Institute for 

Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH - HHS) and 

RECA (DOJ). The purpose of this call is to discuss 

inter-office claims issues, such as streamlining claims 

processes, data sharing, and outreach activities. 

Monthly Records Teleconferences. These 

teleconferences are held monthly and participants 

include representatives of DOL, DOE and NIOSH. The 

purpose of these calls is to coordinate the collection and 

dissemination of documents and other evidence 

necessary to the claims adjudication process. These 

calls have led to more streamlined processes and 

increased adjudication timeliness.

In FY 2002, DOL and NIOSH continued their close 

interagency relationship. Working cooperatively, the 

agencies developed procedures for referral of case files 

to NIOSH for dose reconstruction, determining 

probability of causation, establishing the necessary 

evidence for a case to undergo dose reconstruction and 

handling case transfers. Representatives of DOL and 

NIOSH met on several occasions to resolve complex 

policy and operational issues. In addition, NIOSH 

personnel provided specialized training on using the 

Interactive Radioepidemiological Program (IREP) used 

to calculate the probability that a cancer was at least as 

likely as not related to radiation exposure to DEEOIC 

staff in each district and FAB office, and the

National Office.

On March 11, 2002, DEEOIC implemented changes to 

the employment verification process based on 

cooperation and discussion between DOL and DOE. 

As part of the claims adjudication process, DOE must 

affirm the factual accuracy of claimed employment. 

However, in some instances, DOE does not have access 

to personnel records that will enable it to provide 

necessary verification. Either the records are 

unavailable or under the possession of a nongovernment entity. Working jointly, DOL and DOE 

categorized facilities according to whether or not DOE 

had access to identified corporate entities and contacts to 

which DOL could refer for additional employment 

information. DOE also identified facilities for which no 

records were available. DOL was able to use this 

information to either request information directly from 

the claimant or from a corporate entity identified by 

DOE. The implementation of this process improved 

efficiency and timeliness in establishing the accuracy of 

claimed employment.

DOL and DOE jointly established internet-based access 

to a database maintained by the Oak Ridge Institute for 

Science and Education (ORISE). This database 

contains a large subset of employment history data, 

which authorized claims processors may now search 

on-line to verify employment reported on EEOICPA 

claims. Authorized claims staff now is able to refer 

directly to the database as a first step in the employment 

verification process. This has assisted DOL in 

expediting the adjudication of claims. 

In FY 2002, DOL coordinated closely with DOJ in an 

effort to identify those cases in which claimants jointly 

filed for benefits under RECA and under EEOICPA. 

These efforts led to the ability to process claims from 

RECA recipients in a more timely and efficient manner. 

In a further effort to collect relevant employment 

documentation, in FY 2002, DOL contracted with the 

Social Security Administration (SSA) to obtain 

employer and wage information. The information 

obtained from SSA could then be used by DEEOIC 

district offices to verify employment. For FY 2002, 

SSA provided employer and wage information for

over 400 case files.
Number of Employees 

(FTE staffing used) 20 191

Administrative Expenditures* $ 16.0 M $ 35.1 M

Claims Created 10,123 23,674

Recommended Decisions (Claims) 457 12,825

Final Decisions (Claims)	 180 8,358

Number of Claims Approved 35 5,199

Total Lump Sum

Compensation Payments $ 3.5 M $ 351.0 M 

Number of Medical Bill Payments 3 4,104

Total Medical Payments $ 2,718 $ 3.8 M

*Includes Department of Labor expenditures only; excludes funds transferred

to the Department of Health and Human Services for that agency’s responsibilities 

under EEOICPA ($10.0 million in FY 2001 and $37.5 million in FY 2002, 

respectively).

48 49

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act

Energy Employees Occupational 

Illness Compensation Program Act

Accomplishments

Significant new tracking features were added to the 

ECMS. These new features have enhanced the ability 

to maintain and organize claims within DEEOIC district 

offices, and have increased reporting capabilities. The 

district offices now are able to maintain comprehensive 

status histories on each claim received, track the 

progress of each claim in the adjudication process, log 

and manage notes and call-ups designed to document 

development activity and ensure timely adjudication of 

claims. Due to the strides in reporting capabilities, DOL 

now is able to provide more detailed statistics, including 

the number of claims received, claims referred to DOE 

and NIOSH, numbers of recommended decisions and 

final decisions rendered, the types of conditions being 

claimed, and the number of cases where payments were 

issued and medical benefits authorized. 

The ECMS Compensation Payment System (CPS) was 

implemented in all DEEOIC offices in March 2002. 

CPS is a transaction processing module that enables 

authorized users to create, certify, verify, and authorize 

compensation payment transactions on accepted claims. 

A four-signature on-line review by users in authorized 

roles provides a secure process for creating lump-sum 

payment transactions. A Compensation Payment 

Interface was installed at the same time, enabling 

payment transactions to be transmitted daily to 

DEEOIC’s payment processing site. ECMS also was 

enhanced to capture and maintain audit histories of all 

ECMS payment processing activity. Upon 

implementation of the system, each district office 

received technical training in the application of the

payment process. The implementation of the CPS has 

improved the processing time greatly for lump-sum 

payments to eligible claimants. 

In October 2001, in cooperation with its medical bill 

contractor, Computer Science Corporation (CSC), 

DEEOIC developed a medical bill pay system called 

the Energy Payment System (EPS). EPS is an 

application operated by the contractor to pay medical 

expenses associated with treatment of accepted medical 

conditions. In FY 2002, an electronic interface was 

developed between the EPS and the ECMS to identify 

conditions that the district office has accepted as work 

related. This interface automatically sweeps the ECMS 

database every 24 hours to find, format and transmit 

new eligibility data to the EPS site and allow for 

payment of authorized medical expenses. 

Prompt and accurate medical payments are issued to 

eligible medical providers, and reimbursements for out 

of pocket expenses also are issued to claimants through 

the automated medical reimbursement payment system. 

Various reference materials, such as a Medical Provider 

Manual and Medical Benefit Q&A Booklet, were 

prepared to provide guidance on the new bill pay 

processing system. For FY 2002, 4,104 medical bills 

were paid with an average receipt to payment time of 

seven days.

In FY 2002, a major focus in managing cases was 

placed on the timeliness of the decision process.

Ad hoc reports were developed to assist in defining and 

refining timeliness and workload goals. Other reports 

were then developed to identify progress toward 

meeting these goals at the district, FAB, and national 

levels. Timeliness workload queries were implemented, 

allowing claims processing staff to set priorities for 

claims actions in order to meet division-wide goals.

The program gained enormously in its ability to classify 

and prioritize its work, measure performance against 

goals, audit financial transactions, and measure

quality of work.

FY 2002 saw the continuing development of various 

policies and procedures intended to provide guidance to 

the district office staff. In July 2002, the final DEEOIC 

procedure manual was published. This document 

provides detailed guidance for program claims 

processing. In addition, the DEEOIC issued over 20 

policy bulletins clarifying procedures for claims-related 

activities. Any policy or procedure directive issued by 

DEEOIC is distributed to the four district offices and is 

available upon request by any member of the public. 

The procedure manual and all bulletins issued for FY 

2002 are available through the DEEOIC web page.

From May through August of 2002, DEEOIC 

conducted accountability reviews of each of the four 

district offices. A team of approximately ten members 

visited each district office and reviewed a large sample 

of case files. Each team assessed the selected case files 

to determine how well the district office was meeting 

various program standards and goals, such as timeliness 

of processing, appropriateness of case development, 

data integrity, quality of written decisions and 

responsiveness to customer inquiries.

 FY 2001 FY 2002
Medical and Vocational Rehabilitation 

Programs

I

50 51

registered nurses and vocational rehabilitation 

counselors provide assistance to injured workers in their 

recovery and return-to-work process. During Fiscal 

Year (FY) 2002, OWCP’s medical and vocational 

rehabilitation program returned 9,052 injured 

employees to work, an increase of 7.3 percent over FY 

2001. The continued increase in the number of injured 

employees going back to work is largely the result of 

OWCP’s commitment to its nurse intervention program 

and its ongoing emphasis on the reduction of lost 

production days, a key Government Performance and 

Results Act performance goal. 

During FY 2002, approximately 23,000 injured Federal 

and longshore employees received some form of 

medical or vocational rehabilitation service from 

OWCP. Nurses returned 8,088 employees to work 

under the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act 

(FECA) while vocational rehabilitation counselors 

placed 708 Federal and 256 longshore workers. Costs 

for vocational rehabilitation service and maintenance 

allowances were $7.9 million for FECA and $4.8 

million for Longshore, while FECA nurse services were 

$21.8 million.

Fee Schedules and

Correct Coding of Medical Bills

The FECA regulations (63FR 65284-345) permit the 

application of fee schedules to three different types of 

medical services paid by the Federal Employees’ 

Compensation (FEC) program on behalf of injured 

Federal workers. 

During FY 2002, the total charges for medical services 

for the FEC program subject to the fee schedules were 

reduced by 26 percent, or $229.8 million. The 

application of the professional fee schedule, which is 

based on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 

Services’ (CMS), formerly the Health Care Financing

 njured Employees Back to Work

Under the direction of OWCP staff nurses and 

rehabilitation specialists in Division of Federal 

Employees’ Compensation (DFEC) and 

DLHWC district offices, private sector

Administration, relative value scale, resulted in savings 

of $175.2 million, while the use of the inpatient fee 

schedule produced $42.5 million in savings and savings 

of $12.1 million were attributed to the pharmacy fee 

schedule.

The Correct Coding Initiative (CCI) is a system of 

algorithms developed by CMS to detect incorrect billing 

practices for the Medicare program. CCI was first 

implemented by OWCP for the FEC program during 

FY 2000 and has reduced medical costs ever since. The 

CCI produced savings of $12.7 million during FY 2002.

Contracts for

Medical Second Opinion Services

Medical second opinions are an important component 

of the claims adjudication and management process, 

and they play a critical role in assuring that medical and 

wage-loss compensation benefits are paid appropriately. 

Medical second opinions help claims examiners 

determine the causal relationship between work factors
52 53

Appendix

A. FECA Tables A1 - A4	

B. Black Lung Tables B1 - B7	

C. LHWCA Tables C1 - C5	

D. EEOICPA Tables D1 - D5

E. OWCP Rehabilitation Table E1

Note: Unless otherwise stated, the financial information in the appendix tables that follow

may differ from what is reported in the Department of Labor's Consolidated Financial Statement.

These differences are due to accrual versus cash basis financial reporting requirements and 

adjustments made during statement compilation.

54

58

65

70

75

and the injury or disease, assess the

extent and duration of a physical 

impairment or disability, determine the 

appropriateness of therapy, and determine 

when recovery has occurred and a return 

to work is feasible.

During FY 2002, OWCP awarded two 

new contracts for the provision of medical 

second opinion services in support of FEC 

programs at the National Operations 

Office in Washington, D.C. and the 

District Office in San Francisco. OWCP 

also renewed contracts in support of the 

District Offices in Boston, New York, 

Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Cleveland, 

Chicago, Kansas City, Denver, Seattle and 

Dallas. During the year, contractors 

provided more than 12,000 second 

opinions at an estimated saving to the 

program of $2.6 million. The overall 

quality of reports provided by contractors 

has been good. Reports are clearly 

written, comprehensive, and responsive to 

claims examiners’ questions, and the 

average time for delivery of reports 

continues to be significantly shorter 

compared to the period before these 

contracts were in place.

 FISCAL YEAR

OWCP Vocational

Rehabilitation Programs

Return People To Work

8,500

8,000

7,500

7,000

6,500

6,000

5,500

5,000

4,500

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Longshore FECA Rehabilitation Nurse Intervention

9,500

9,000
54 55

 Fiscal Year

Federal Employees' Compensation Rolls

FY 1993—FY 2002

(Cases at End-of-Year)

Table A—1

1993

59,551

-

50,312

-

6,623

2,616 

1994

60,136

1.0%

50,538

0.4%

6,589

3,009 

1995

59,605

-0.9%

50,685

0.3%

6,537

2,383

1996

58,329

-2.1%

50,021

-1.3%

6,353

1,955

1997

55,484

-4.9%

49,319

-1.4%

6,165

0

1998

56,159

1.2%

50,105

1.6%

6,054

0

1999

54,897

-2.2%

48,957

-2.3%

5,940

0

2000

54,709

-0.3%

48,870

-0.2%

5,839

0

2001

56,133

2.6%

50,409

3.1%

5,724

0

2002

56,751

1.1%

51,092

1.4%

5,659

0

Roll Type

Total Periodic Roll

% change v. prior yr.

 Long-Term Disability

 % change v. prior yr.

 Death

 Short-term1

 Fiscal Year

Federal Employees' Compensation Program 

Summary of Claims Activity

FY 1993—FY 2002

Table A—2

Claim Activity

Incoming Cases

Cases Created

 Traumatic 

 No Lost Time

 Lost Time

 Occupational Disease

 Fatal Cases

Wage-Loss Claims Initiated

Hearings and Review1

Total Requests for Hearing

Total Hearing Dispositions

 Pre-Hearing Remands

 Dismissals

 Affirmations

 Post-Hearing Remands

 Reviews of the Written Record

 Withdrawals/No-Shows

1993

179,357

154,424

71,987

82,437

24,730

203

20,735

6,673

5,431

823

863

1,879

696

544

626 

1994

185,927

160,560

71,999

88,561

25,161

206

21,402

6,607

6,571

847

1,216

2,399

807

583

719 

1995

180,350

154,250

74,602

79,648

25,835

265

21,755

7,357

7,019

742

1,184

2,686

906

806

695

1996

175,052

150,204

75,829

74,375

24,689

159

20,392

7,951

7,101

970

1,375

2,474

876

806

600

1997

173,319

146,489

78,642

67,847

26,680

150

19,181

7,642

7,525

1,036

1,227

2,604

958

1,022

678

1998

165,135

138,975

75,321

63,654

25,954

206

19,315

7,496

8,087

1,056

1,191

2,965

910

1,179

786

1999

166,544

140,383

83,472

56,911

25,999

162

19,759

7,164

7,926

723

992

3,178

958

1,253

822

2000

174,471

145,915

91,620

54,295

28,406

150

21,899

6,992

7,418

678

944

2,945

1,068

1,167

616

2001

165,915

137,877

86,402

51,475

27,869

169

23,386

6,875

6,599

704

1,003

2,266

944

1,118

564

1

 Beginning in FY 1997, short-term periodic roll cases are no longer tracked separately.

2002

158,118

132,250

80,439

51,811

25,739

129

23,193

6,820

6,272

543

980

2,170

848

1,209

522

1

 As a result of an internal audit conducted by DFEC, various hearings and review data 

were revised for the years 1993-1996. Management reports were compared with automated 

system data that began in 1992, and corrections were made to reconcile differences between 

the two sources.

FECA Tables A1-A2
1993

$1,884,094

1,822,338

1,236,927

472,257

113,154

61,756

0 

1994

$1,922,707

1,859,349

1,284,380

459,312

115,657

63,358

0 

1995

$1,953,952

1,880,754

1,309,562

453,208

117,984

73,198

5,284

1996

$2,062,325

1,984,209

1,375,808

481,833

126,568

78,116

12,971

1997

$1,968,256

1,887,363

1,314,603

450,206

122,554

80,893

13,590

1998

$2,024,494

1,944,259

1,343,879

476,167

124,213

80,235

11,028

1999

$2,076,475

1,989,050

1,370,206

492,835

126,009

87,425

19,858

2000

$2,170,247

2,078,715

1,403,154

548,596

126,965

91,532

20,898

2001

$2,308,595

2,199,276

1,453,740

617,414

128,122

109,319

30,348

2002

$2,418,364

2,307,942

1,509,275

667,797

130,870

110,422

29,212

Type of 

Obligation

Total 

Obligations

 Total Benefits

 Compensation 

 Benefits

 Medical 

 Benefits

 Survivor 

 Benefits

 Total

 Administrative

 Expenditures

 Salaries and 

 Fair Share

56 57

 Fiscal Year

Federal Employees' Compensation Program Obligations

FY 1993—FY 2002

($ thousands)

Table A—3

1993

$1,884,094

1,822,338

1,236,927

472,257

113,154

61,756

61,756 

1994

$1,922,707

1,859,349

1,284,380

459,312

115,657

63,358

63,358 

1995

$1,953,952

1,880,754

1,309,562

453,208

117,984

73,198

67,914

1996

$2,062,325

1,984,209

1,375,808

481,833

126,568

78,116

65,145

1997

$1,968,256

1,887,363

1,314,603

450,206

122,554

80,893

67,303

1998

$2,024,494

1,944,259

1,343,879

476,167

124,213

80,235

69,207

1999

$2,076,475

1,989,050

1,370,206

492,835

126,009

87,425

67,567

2000

$2,170,247

2,078,715

1,403,154

548,596

126,965

91,532

70,634

2001

$2,308,595

2,199,276

1,453,740

617,414

128,122

109,319

78,971

2002

$2,418,364

2,307,942

1,509,275

667,797

130,870

110,422

81,210

Type of 

Obligation

Total 

Obligations

 Total Benefits

 Compensation 

 Benefits

 Medical 

 Benefits

 Survivor 

 Benefits

 Total

 Administrative

 Expenditures

 Salaries and 

 Expenses

 Chargeback Year1

Federal Employees' Compensation Program Chargeback Costs, 

by Major Federal Agency

CBY 1993—CBY 2002

($ thousands)

Table A—4

1993

$1,756,837

508,881

250,522

164,179

142,486

114,196

87,722

47,332

64,072

59,220

52,644

265,583

1994

$1,813,931

521,456

262,274

168,350

145,471

115,993

90,171

51,605

69,620

60,085

59,113

269,793

1995

$1,835,129

536,643

256,816

165,461

143,047

119,184

89,308

55,757

72,835

59,332

62,096

274,650

1996

$1,840,811

547,141

256,210

163,986

140,729

116,141

89,407

58,136

72,269

58,926

61,069

276,797

1997

$1,833,926

551,142

247,488

159,781

136,607

117,242

89,369

63,878

72,547

59,230

61,360

275,282

1998

$1,887,980

577,159

243,938

162,152

140,118

124,302

95,823

67,875

73,953

60,348

62,729

279,583

1999

$1,908,256

594,503

240,492

163,127

137,865

123,349

97,155

76,319

75,125

59,851

63,563

276,908

2000

$2,024,634

666,310

241,585

166,989

143,221

128,134

96,936

83,873

78,921

64,882

64,797

288,987

2001

$2,129,097

720,518

246,881

169,219

145,909

134,106

99,556

91,197

83,367

66,750

64,761

306,834

2002

$2,219,448

785,199

248,250

174,832

151,612

132,538

101,716

95,620

88,073

69,563

63,888

308,156

Federal Agency

Total Costs

 U.S. Postal 

 Service

 Department 

 of the Navy

 Department 

 of the Army

 Department of 

 Veterans Affairs

 Department 

 of the Air Force

 Department 

 of Transportation

 Department 

 of Justice

 Department 

 of the Treasury

 Department 

 of Agriculture

 Department

 of Defense

 All Other 

 Agencies

1

 A year for chargeback purposes is from July 1 through June 30. 

FECA Tables A3-A4
58 59

Part C Black Lung Claims Adjudication

at the Initial Level

FY 2002

Table B—1

Distribution of Part C

Black Lung Claims and Disbursements, by State

FY 2002

Table B—2

1

 All filings since July 1, 1973, including terminated and nonapproved claims.

2

 Active MBO claims as of 9/30/02.

3

 Active claims currently in payment status, excluding MBO claims, as of 9/30/02.

4

 Disbursements of income and medical benefits for all claims, including 

claims paid by the Trust Fund and claims in interim pay status.

Note: Data in column no. 1 may not be consistent with changes from previous years due 

to a change in computer systems.

Black Lung Tables B1-B2

Type of Claim

Trust Fund

 Approved

 Denied 

Responsible Operators 

 Approved

 Denied

Total Findings 	

 Total Approved

 Total Denied

SSAE’s Issued1

6,531

640

5,891

6,531

640

5,891

Approval Rate

9.80%

9.80%

1

 SSAE is “Schedule for the Submission of Additional Evidence” (under the revised 

regulations, replaces the former “Initial Finding”).

2

 PDO is “Proposed Decision and Order” (under the revised regulations, corresponds 

roughly to the former “Reconsideration”).

Note: FY 2002 was the first year Proposed Decisions and Orders were issued under the revised Black Lung 

regulations. Data reported in previous years is not comparable.

Total Claims 

Received1

32,189

149

1,987

3,781

6,408

6,914

989

761

285

11,630

1,571

16

239

30,377

17,444

5,093

2,159

85,579

338

43

6,564

228

10,386

141

348

4,588

851

125

407

26

4,250

2,313

3,968

3,237

157

52,559

3,754

621

134,158

41

839

48

20,070

1,657

3,967

45

40,738

1,575

106,260

440

2,531

447

615,291

MBO 

Claims2

173

1

14

42

37

46

5

6

2

179

27

0

2

157

100

27

5

1,586

3

0

57

2

47

0

5

8

4

0

3

0

29

7

22

50

0

316

35

5

1,813

0

14

0

283

12

37

0

888

8

1,963

3

7

3

8,033

In Payment

3

1,376

14

200

276

412

623

109

94

25

1,148

201

1

22

1,861

1,074

361

109

5,738

24

7

509

23

663

12

37

318

55

15

56

5

420

168

323

396

9

4,026

237

58

14,650

4

131

6

1,377

166

341

6

4,168

113

9,581

44

228

32

51,852

Total Benefits

($ 000)

4

$9,938

96

1,373

2,040

2,881

4,292

731

642

173

8,514

1,463

6

154

12,948

7,533

2,489

731

46,992

173

45

3,631

160

4,556

77

269

2,092

379

96

379

32

2,881

1,123

2,232

2,862

58

27,857

1,745

404

105,626

26

930

38

10,650

1,141

2,425

38

32,438

776

74,065

302

1,508

225

$384,235

State

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado 

Connecticut

Delaware 

District of Columbia 

Florida 

Georgia 

Hawaii 

Idaho 

Illinois 

Indiana 

Iowa 

Kansas 

Kentucky 

Louisiana 

Maine 

Maryland 

Massachusetts 

Michigan 

Minnesota 

Mississippi 

Missouri 

Montana 

Nebraska 

Nevada 

New Hampshire 

New Jersey 

New Mexico 

New York 

North Carolina 

North Dakota 

Ohio 

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

All Other

Total

PDO’s Issued2

895

146

749

3,199

222

2,977

4,094

368

3,726

Approval Rate

16.31%

6.94%

8.99%
60 61

 Number of Beneficiaries2

Black Lung Claims, by Class of Beneficiary

FY 1993—FY 20021

Table B—3

1993

40,866

44,103

1,280

86,249

34,758

1,710

496

36,964

123,213

1994

37,970

44,073

1,332

83,375

32,013

1,668

513

34,194

117,569

1995

35,220

43,688

1,362

80,270

29,377

1,614

508

31,499

111,769

1996

32,452

43,155

1,393

77,000

26,845

1,558

520

28,923

105,923

1997

29,839

42,468

1,444

73,751

24,599

1,491

511

26,601

100,352

1998

27,340

41,585

1,476

70,401

22,158

1,417

512

24,087

94,488

1999

24,838

40,517

1,508

66,863

19,953

1,384

516

21,853

88,716

2000

22,568

39,053

1,497

63,118

17,978

1,306

508

19,792

82,910

2001

18,248

35,660

1,467

55,375

13,924

1,123

108

15,155

70,530

2002

16,395

34,236

1,221

51,852

12,432

1,077

386

13,895

65,747

Class of Beneficiary

Primary Beneficiaries:

 Miners

 Widows

 Others

Total Primary Beneficiaries

Dependents of Primary 

Beneficiaries:

 Dependents of Miners

 Dependents of Widows

 Dependents of Others

Total Dependents

Total, All Beneficiaries

1

 As of September 30 of each year.

2

 Active claims, including those paid by a RMO, cases paid by the Trust Fund, cases 

in interim pay status, cases that are being offset due to concurrent Federal or state 

benefits, and cases that have been temporarily suspended. Does not include MBO 

beneficiaries.

 Fiscal Year

Department of Labor Black Lung Benefits Program Obligations

FY 1993—FY 2002

($ thousands)

Table B—4

1993

$984,666

562,035

448,395

113,640

56,016

366,616

343,000

$3,949,032

1994

$994,655

554,349

444,276

110,073

52,550

387,756

413,925

$4,362,957

1995

$995,722

525,563

423,736

101,827

51,502

418,656

375,100

$4,738,057

1996

$992,128

499,622

404,623

95,000

47,314

445,192

373,500

$5,111,557

1997

$1,004,672

487,910

392,546

95,363

46,128

470,635

375,000

$5,486,557

1998

$999,822

459,061

376,985

82,076

46,035

494,726

370,000

$5,856,557

1999

$1,005,246

439,442

363,871

75,571

50,788

515,016

402,000

$6,258,557

2000

$1,013,593

422,656

350,266

72,390

49,820

541,117

490,000

$6,748,557

2001

$1,016,994

396,928

336,813

60,116

52,252

567,814

505,000

$7,253,557

2002

$1,034,096

384,234

320,039

64,196

54,273

595,589

465,000

$7,718,557

Type of 

Obligation

Total 

Obligations

 Total 

 Benefits1

 Income 

 Benefits2

 Medical

 Benefits3

 Administrative 

 Costs4

 Interest 

 Charges5

Repayable

Advances6

Cumulative 

Debt7

1

 Excludes collections from responsible mine operators for benefits paid by 

Trust Fund on an interim basis, refunds for OWCP administrative costs paid, 

and other miscellaneous reimbursements.

2

 Monthly and retroactive benefit payments.

3

 Includes diagnostic and treatment costs, and reimbursements to the Centers 

for Medicare & Medicaid Services of the Department of Health and Human 

Services and the Health and Retirement Funds of the UMWA.

4

 Administrative expenses include reimbursements to SSA.

5

 Starting in 1979, the Trust Fund had to borrow funds from the Treasury 

Department to pay operating costs not covered by revenues. Interest charges 

reflect the cost to the Trust Fund for those advances from the Treasury.

6

 Reflects advances from the Treasury Department during the fiscal year.

7

 Shows the cumulative debt of the Trust Fund to the Treasury.

Note: Detail may not add to totals due to rounding.

Black Lung Tables B3-B4
62 63

 Benefit Rates by Type of Beneficiary

Monthly Part C Black Lung Benefit Rates

1973—2002

Table B—5

Claimant

$169.80

177.60

187.40

196.80

205.40

219.90

232.00

254.00

279.80

293.20

304.90

317.10

328.20

338.00

344.80

358.90

371.80

387.10

403.30

418.20

427.40

427.40

435.10

445.10

455.40

469.50

487.40

500.50

518.50

Claimant and 

1 Dependent

$254.70

266.40

281.10

295.20

308.10

329.80

348.00

381.00

419.60

439.80

457.30

475.60

492.30

507.00

517.20

538.30

557.70

580.60

605.00

627.30

641.10

641.10

652.70

667.70

683.10

704.30

731.00

750.80

777.80

Claimant and

2 Dependents

$297.10

310.80

328.00

344.40

359.50

384.80

405.90

444.50

489.60

513.10

533.60

554.90

574.30

591.50

603.40

628.10

650.60

677.40

705.80

731.90

748.00

748.00

761.50

779.00

796.90

821.60

852.80

875.90

907.40

Claimant and 3 or

More Dependents

$339.50

355.20

374.80

393.50

410.80

439.70

463.90

508.00

559.50

586.40

609.80

634.20

656.40

676.00

689.60

717.80

743.60

774.10

806.60

836.40

854.80

854.80

870.20

890.20

910.70

939.00

974.70

1,001.00

1,037.00

Period

7/1/73-9/30/73

10/1/73-9/30/74

10/1/74-9/30/75

10/1/75-9/30/76

10/1/76-9/30/77

10/1/77-9/30/78

10/1/78-9/30/79

10/1/79-9/30/80

10/1/80-9/30/81

10/1/81-9/30/82

10/1/82-12/31/83

1/1/84-12/31/841

1/1/85-12/31/86

1/1/87-12/31/87

1/1/88-12/31/88

1/1/89-12/31/89

1/1/90-12/31/90

1/1/91-12/31/91

1/1/92-12/31/92

1/1/93-12/31/93

1/1/94-12/31/94

1/1/95-12/31/95

1/1/96-12/31/96

1/1/97-12/31/97

1/1/98-12/31/98

1/1/99-12/31/99

1/1/00-12/31/00

1/1/01-12/31/01

1/1/02-12/31/02

1These benefit rates include tbe additional one - half percent increase that was 

granted retroactive to January 1, 1984. The rates in effect prior to the retroactive 

payments (1/l/84 through 6/30/84) were: $315.60 for a claimant only; $473.30

Funding

Funding and Disbursements 

of the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund

FY 2002

($ thousands)

Table B—6

Month

October 2001

November 2001

December 2001

January 2002

February 2002

March 2002

April 2002

May 2002

June 2002

July 2002

August 2002

September 2002

Totals

$7,524

48,521

47,521

42,611

48,834

47,657

44,017

53,497

50,647

46,884

51,344

77,588

$566,645

$0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

465,000

$465,000

$147

121

267

144

82

268

442

276

299

639

301

227

$3,213

$7,671

48,642

47,788

42,755

48,916

47,925

44,459

53,773

50,946

47,523

51,645

542,815

$1,034,858

$27,354

26,775

26,742

26,348

27,293

27,110

26,753

26,694

26,434

26,232

26,070

26,234

$320,039

$513

374

441

499

276

573

345

484

287

426

481

438

5,136

$5,427

3,957

3,105

5,080

4,876

5,573

5,762

6,470

4,651

5,144

5,406

3,564

$59,060

$33,294

31,106

30,334

31,926

32,445

33,256

32,860

33,649

31,372

31,801

31,957

30,235

$384,234

$1,772

2,681

1,580

4,550

5,657

5,484

5,464

5,421

5,420

5,464

5,419

5,363

$54,273

$0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

595,589

$595,589

$35,066

33,786

31,913

36,476

38,103

38,740

38,325

39,069

36,791

37,265

37,376

631,187

$1,034,096

1

 Reimbursements include collections from RMOs, and fines, penalties, and interest. 

2

 Includes monthly and retroactive benefit payments.

3

 Treatment expenditures include reimbursements to the United Mine Workers' Health 

and Retirement Funds.

Disbursements

Medical Benefits

Coal Excise

Tax 

Revenue

Treasury 

Advances Reimburse1 Total

Income 

Benefits2 Diagnostic Treatment

3

Total

Benefits

Admin.

Costs

Interest on 

Advances Total

for a claimant and 1 dependent; $552.20 for a claimant and 2 dependents; and, 

$631.10 for a claimant and 3 or more dependents.

Black Lung Tables B5-B6
64 65

Comparison of Benefit Payments Under the Black Lung Benefits 

Act (BLBA) With Payments for Permanent Total Disability Under 

Selected State Workers’ Compensation Laws

(As of September 30, 2002)

Table B—7

Benefit Under:

BLBA

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

Colorado 

Illinois 

Indiana 

Iowa 

Kansas 

Kentucky 

Maryland 

Missouri 

Montana 

New Mexico 

North Dakota 

Ohio 

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wyoming

1

 Actual wage paid if less than monthly minimum.

2

 Minimum is $476.30, or $731.77 if employee shows proof of wages, or 

worker’s spendable weekly wage if less.

3

 Additional weekly compensation is paid for each dependent, not to exceed 

the worker's net wage in North Dakota, and 85 percent of the state average 

weekly wage in Utah.

Maximum Monthly

Benefit

(Miners Only)

Maximum Monthly

Benefit

(Incl. Dependents)

Minimum Monthly

Benefit

(Miners Only)

 Calendar Year

Total Industry Compensation 

and Benefit Payments Under LHWCA

1

CY 1992—CY 20012

($ thousands)

Table C—1

$267,078

235,251

$502,329

$265,700

240,449

$506,149

$273,667

247,157

$520,824

$257,895

238,474

$496,369

$272,688

226,592

$499,280

$263,255

219,352

$482,607

$261,559

238,464

$500,023

$283,991

232,778

$516,769

$278,952

249,671

$528,623

$307,708

236,726

$544,434

Payments By:

 Self-Insured

 Employers

 Insurance Carriers

Total Payments

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001

1

 Includes disability compensation and medical benefit payments under LHWCA, DCCA, and all 

other extensions to the Act.

2

 Industry payments are reported to the Department of Labor on a calendar year basis.

$ 518.50

2,463.77

3,299.46

1,619.46

1,840.25

2,853.99

4,209.28

2,199.64

4,775.99

1,870.56

2,384.36

2,892.44

2,811.56

2,048.09

2,238.13

2,234.28

2,719.24

2,048.09

2,866.46

2,593.67

2,325.21

2,433.46

2,948.73

3,722.90

2,289.11

2,281.91

$1,037.00

2,463.77

3,299.46

1,619.46

1,840.25

2,853.99

4,209.28

2,199.64

4,775.99

1,870.56

2,384.36

2,892.44

2,811.56

2,048.09

2,238.13

2,234.283

2,719.24

2,048.09

2,866.46

2,593.67

2,325.21

2,433.463

2,984.73

3,722.90

2,289.11

2,281.91

$ 518.50

675.481

476.302

N/A

86.60

N/A

1,578.50

216.501

835.691

108.25

476.86

216.501

173.20 

N/A

155.881

1,221.061

1,359.621

129.901

1,592.441

389.05

350.73

194.85

737.181

185.004

763.02

N/A

Black Lung Table B7 LHWCA Table C1

4

 Minimum compensation benefit ranges from $185.00 to $352.00, according 

to marital status and number of dependents.

N/A=Not Applicable
1998 129,777 118,496 2,699 3,718 4,864 5,208 12,521 10,810 802 4 904 638

1999 131,152 117,574 2,439 4,888 6,251 5,145 11,879 10,748 747 6 377 617

417.87 835.74 208.94 4.33

1

 Maximum became applicable in death cases (for any death after September 

28, 1984) pursuant to LHWCA Amendments of 1984. Section 9(e)(1) provides 

that the total weekly death benefits shall not exceed the lesser of the average 

weekly wages of the deceased or the benefits which the deceased would have 

been eligible to receive under section 6(b)(1). Maximum in death cases not

435.88 871.76 217.94 4.31

applicable to DCCA cases (Keener v. Washington Metropolitan Area Transit 

Authority, 800 F.2d 1173 (D.C. Cir. (1986)).

2

 Five percent statutory maximum increase applicable in FY 1985 under section 

10(f) of LHWCA, as amended. Maximum increase not applicable to DCCA 

cases (see note1, above).

66 67

National Average Weekly Wage (NAWW) 

and Corresponding Maximum and Minimum Compensation 

Rates and Annual Adjustments 

Pursuant to Sections 6(b), 9(e), and 10(f) of LHWCA

Table C—2

Period

11/26/72-9/30/73

10/01/73-9/30/74

10/01/74-9/30/75

10/01/75-9/30/76

10/01/76-9/30/77

10/01/77-9/30/78

10/01/78-9/30/79

10/01/79-9/30/80

10/01/80-9/30/81

10/01/81-9/30/82

10/01/82-9/30/83

10/01/83-9/30/84

10/01/84-9/30/85

10/01/85-9/30/86

10/01/86-9/30/87

10/01/87-9/30/88

10/01/88-9/30/89

10/01/89-9/30/90

10/01/90-9/30/91

10/01/91-9/30/92

10/01/92-9/30/93

10/01/93-9/30/94

10/01/94-9/30/95

10/01/95-9/30/96

10/01/96-9/30/97

10/01/97-9/30/98

10/01/98-9/30/99

10/01/99-9/30/00

10/01/00-9/30/01

10/01/01-9/30/02

NAWW

$ 131.80

140.26

149.10

159.20

171.28

183.61

198.39

213.13

228.12

248.35

262.35

274.17

289.83

297.62

302.66

308.48

318.12

330.31

341.07

349.98

360.57

369.15

380.46

Maximum

Payable

$ 167.00

210.54

261.00

318.38

342.54

367.22

396.78

426.26

456.24

496.70

524.70

548.341

579.66

595.24

605.32

616.96

636.24

660.62

682.14

699.96

721.14

738.30

760.92

Minimum

Payable

$ 65.90

70.18

74.57

79.60

85.64

91.81

99.20

106.57

114.06

124.18

131.18

137.09

144.92

148.81

151.33

154.24

159.06

165.16

170.54

174.99

180.29

184.58

190.23

Annual Adjustment

(% Increase in NAWW)

——

6.49

6.26

6.74

7.59

7.21

8.05

7.43

7.03

8.87

5.64

4.51

5.712

2.69

1.69

1.92

3.13

3.83

3.26

2.61

3.03

2.38

3.06

DCCA

Expenditures ($)

LHWCA

Expenditures ($)

FY Total

Second

Injury

Cases2

Pre

Amend. 

Cases3 Rehab.4 Other5

Number

of

Second

Injury

Cases Total

Second 

Injury 

Cases

2

Pre

Amend.

Cases

3 Rehab.4 Other5

Number

of

Second

Injury

Cases

LHWCA and DCCA Special Funds’ Expenditures

1

FY 1993—FY 2002

($ thousands)

Table C—3

1

 Special Fund expenditures shown in this table are reported on a cash basis, 

i.e., expenses are recognized when paid.

2

 Section 8(f) payments to employees who sustain second injuries which, 

superimposed on a pre-existing injury, results in the employee's permanent 

disability or death.

3

 Section 10(h) of the Act requires that compensation payments to permanent 

total disabilily and death cases, when the injury or death is caused by an 

employment event which occurred prior to enactment of the 1972 amendments, 

be adjusted to conform with the weekly wage computation methods and 

compensation rates put into effect by the 1972 amendments. Fifty percent of 

any additional compensation or death benefit paid as a result of these adjustments 

are to be paid out of the Special Fund accounts.

4

 In cases where vocational or medical rehabilitation services for permanently 

disabled employees are not available otherwise, and for maintenance allowances 

for employees undergoing vocational rehabilitation, sections 39(c) and 8(g) 

of the Act authorize the cost of these services to be paid by the Special Fund.

5 For cases where impartial medical exams or reviews are ordered by the 

Department of Labor (section 7(e) of Act) and where a compensation award 

cannot be paid due to employer default (section 18(b)), the expenses or 

payments resulting from these actions may be covered by the Special Fund. 

Also included as "Other" expenditures of the Funds are disbursements under 

section 44(d) to refund assessment overpayments in FY 1991 - FY 1993, 

and FY1995 - FY 2002. Excluded are disbursements from proceeds of 

employer securities redeemed under section 32 of the Act. These monies are 

exclusively for payment of compensation and medical benefits to employees 

of companies in default.

Note: Special Fund expenditure totals for some years as shown above may differ from those 

reported to Congress in the Appendix to the President's budget. The figures here are from yearend Status of Funds reports while the President's budget reflects total outlays as reported to the 

Department of Treasury and may include technical adjustments made by Treasury or the Office 

of Management and Budget.

1995 116,656 104,317 2,738 4,328 5,272 5,023 11,435 10,284 845 0 305 641

391.22 782.44 195.61 2.83

1996 118,260 106,536 2,627 4,110 4,987 5,126 11,868 10,266 819 0 783 659

400.53 801.06 200.27 2.38

1997 123,772 111,732 2,570 4,170 5,300 5,209 11,548 10,375 807 1 366 651

LHWCA Tables C2-C3

450.64 901.28 225.32 3.39

1993 

1994 

$103,321 

107,611

$90,860

95,856

 $2,887

2,829 

$4,804 

4,228

$4,770 

4,699 

4,652 

4,842 

$11,330 

11,382 

$9,984 

10,318 

$903 

872 

$6

0 

$437 

193 

698 

683

2002 131,715 119,661 2,240 4,801 5,013 4,880 11,386 10,214 702 0 469 585

466.91 933.82 233.46 3.61

2000 131,564 119,198 2,459 4,595 5,313 5,025 11,804 10,521 728 0 555 612

483.04 966.08 241.52 3.45

2001 133,374 119,952 2,295 5,121 6,006 4,953 11,341 10,368 708 0 265 601
133,000 361,549 CY 2000 12,000 5,103 CY 2000

68 69

LHWCA DCCA

Total Industry 

Assessments2

Preceding Year Total 

Industry Payments3

 Assessment

Base Year

Total Industry 

Assessments2

Preceding Year Total 

Industry Payments

Assessment

Base Year

LHWCA and DCCA Special Funds’ Assessments1

CY 1993—CY 2002

($ thousands)

Table C—4

1

 Annual assessments of employers and insurance carriers are the largest single 

source of receipts to the Special Funds. Other receipts to the Funds include 

fines and penalties, payments for death cases where there is no person entitled 

under the act to the benefit payments, interest earned on Fund investments, 

overpayment and third party recoveries, and monies received from redemption 

of securities under section 32 of the Act to pay compensation due employees 

of companies in default. These payments constitute a small portion of the total 

receipts of the Special Funds.

2

 Assessments as shown here are not receipts to the Fund which were received 

during a given calendar year, but total assessments which are receivable from

CY

1993 

1994 

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

employers and insurance carriers based on the Special Fund assessment formula 

as prescribed under section 44(c) of the Act. 

3

 Annual industry assessments prior to CY 1985 were based on each employer's 

or insurance carrier's total disability compensation and medical benefit payments 

under the Act during the preceding calendar year. The LHWCA Amendments 

of 1984 revised the method for computing assessments in two ways. Effective 

in CY1985, assessments are based on disability compensation payments only, 

thereby excluding medical benefits from the computation. Also, a factor for 

section 8(f) payments attributable to each employer/carrier was added to the 

assessment base.

 Fiscal Year

Summary of Case Processing Activities Under LHWCA

1

FY 1993—FY 2002

Table C—5

5,309

4,040

6,9112

10,951

3,754

7,197

1,7863

782

2,568

683

1,781

5,720

7,197

3,878

11,075

7,118

3,957

1,781

2,7724

4,553

800

3,7455

5,401

3,957

3,324

7,281

3,527

3,754

3,745

885

4,630

1,397

3,2506

6,207

4,1417

4,107

8,248

3,339

4,909

1,6618

481

2,142

1,7218

3999

7,759

4,909

3,52010

8,429

3,557

4,872

399

457

856

539

34811

6,974

3,849

12

3,579

7,428

3,566

3,862

13

348

419

767

464

318

14

9,006

3,862

3,462

7,324

3,656

3,668

318

421

739

438

326

15

8,675

3,668

3,566

7,234

3,672

3,562

326

423

749

467

295

15

6,489

3,562

3,500

7,062

3,674

3,388

295

317

612

384

248

15

7,391

3,388

3,276

6,664

3,529

2,980

16

248

260

508

319

208

15

Adjudication Level 

and Case Status

District Offices

Pending Inventory of Cases

OALJ

 Carryover from Previous FY

 New Cases

Total Docket

 (Dispositions)

Pending Inventory

BRB

 Carryover from Previous FY

 New Cases

Total Docket

 (Dispositions)

Pending Inventory

1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

1 Beginning in FY 1988, DCCA cases are excluded from DLHWC's District 

Offices' inventory as administration of these cases was delegated to the District 

of Columbia government effective July 18, 1988. Case processing and adjudication 

activities at the OALJ and BRB levels continue to include both LHWCA and 

DCCA cases.

2

Includes 3,093 cases received on the basis of the Supreme Court’s decision in 

Estate of Cowart vs. Nicklos Drilling Co., 112 S.Ct. 2589 (1992).

3 The differences between the carryover in FY 1993 and pending inventory at 

the end of FY 1992 and between the sum of activity in FY 1993 and that year’s 

pending inventory at year-end are due to data adjustments made by the BRB.

4

 Includes 2,066 appeals filed in the so-called Ingalls Shipbuilding, Inc. cases, 

and involve various issues arising under section 33 of LHWCA.

5

 This figure, as adjusted by BRB, excludes eight cases previously classified 

as new appeals.

6

 Data adjustments by the BRB account for the difference between the sum of 

activity in FY 1995 and that year's pending inventory at year-end.

7 The difference between the carryover in FY1996 and pending inventory at 

the end of FY1995 is due to data adjustments made by the OALJ.

8 3,250 total appeals were carried over, but figures were adjusted by BRB to 

take into account 1,636 separate appeals which were consolidated and disposed 

of by 5 decisions.

9 Number adjusted by BRB to account for misfiled, duplicate, or reinstated 

appeals.

10 Excludes 116 new "33(g)" cases and 1,496 "33(g)" cases remanded from BRB 

being held in abeyance.

11 Number adjusted by BRB to account for misfiled, duplicate, or reinstated 

appeals.

12 The difference between the carryover in FY 1998 and pending inventory at 

the end of FY 1997 is due to data modifications and corrections made by the 

OALJ.

13 The FY 1998 numbers do not include 2,877 section 33(g) cases that were 

pending at the beginning of the year, or the 30 dispositions that occurred in 

such cases.

14 Data adjustments by the BRB account for the difference between the sum of 

activity in FY 1998 and that year's pending inventory at year-end.

15 Data adjusted by BRB to account for misfiled, duplicate, or reinstated appeals.

16 Includes dispositions of Boone 33(g) cases.

113,000 344,103 CY 1995 11,300 6,754 CY 1995

110,000 350,711 CY 1996 11,300 6,361 CY 1996

111,000 334,339 CY 1997 11,000 5,911 CY 1997

LHWCA Tables C4-C5

 $102,500

116,000

118,000

$336,379

346,490

360,566

CY 1992

CY 1993

CY 1994

$11,500

11,500

12,000

$7,665

9,970

6,787

CY 1992

CY 1993

CY 1994

130,000 343,146 CY 1998 11,300 6,232 CY 1998

133,000 353,462 CY 1999 12,700 5,179 CY 1999

125,000 372,376 CY 2001 11,000 5,552 CY 2001
70

Status of All EEOICPA Applications

at the End of FY 20021

Table D—1

Case Status/Claims Activity

Total Received-Program Inception Through 9/30/2002

 Final Decisions Completed by

 Final Approved

 Final Denied

 Recommended Decisions by District Offices5

 Recommended Decisions Only, to Approve

 Recommended Decisions Only, to Deny

 Completed Initial Processing-

 Referred to NIOSH

 Pending Initial Processing In District Office

1

 Statistics show the status of all applications filed from program inception through 

September 30, 2002.

2

 “Case” counts are limited to numbers of employees who filed for EEOICPA benefits.

3

“Claim” counts are greater than case counts because they include numbers of employees 

and employees’ survivors who filed for benefits.

4

 Each case or claim also received recommended decision by district office.

5

 Each case or claim still pending final decision by FAB.

Processing Activity During FY 2002 on All EEOICPA

Cases/Claims Received Since Program Inception

1

Table D—2

71

EEOICPA Tables D1-D2

Case2

27,622

6,831

4,041

2,790

3,990

492

3,498 

8,245 

8,556

Claim3

34,394

8,431

5,312

3,119

4,570

652

3,918 

9,958 

11,435

Processing Activity

Total Cases/Claims Received-FY 2002

Final Decisions by FAB Offices in FY 2002

 Final Approved

 Final Denied

Modification Orders in FY 2002

Recommended Decisions by District Offices in FY 2002

 Recommended Decisions Only, to Approve

 Recommended Decisions Only, to Deny

Case Referrals to NIOSH in FY 2002

Lump Sum Compensation Payments in FY 2002

1

 Activity statistics capture actions made during FY 2002 only, therefore the number of 

activities reported do not add up to the total number of cases/claims received during FY 

2002. (Many activities recorded occurred on cases/claims received prior to FY 2002).

2

 “Case” counts are limited to numbers of employees who filed for EEOICPA benefits.

3

“Claim” counts are greater than case counts because they include numbers of employees 

and employees’ survivors who filed for benefits.

4

 Of this total, 6,654 also received a final decision by FAB.

5

 Of this total, 8,251 also received a final decision by FAB.

Case2

18,267

6,654

3,864

2,790

17

10,3664

4,077

6,289

8,236 

see claim statistics

Claim3

24,873

8,251

5,132

3,119

23

12,541

5 

5,505

7,036

see case statistics

4,803

Final Adjudication Branch (FAB)4
72 73

EEOICPA Cases With Final Decision To Deny,

Program Inception Through September 30, 2002

Table D—4

EEOICPA Tabls D3-D4

EEOICPA Cases With Approved Decisions and Payments,

by Category, Program Inception Through September 30, 2002

Table D—3

Category

Radiation Exposure Comp. Act (RECA)3

Special Exposure Cohort Cancer (CN)

Dose Reconstructed Cancer (CN)

Beryllium Disease (CBD)4

Beryllium Sensitivity-Only (BS)

Silicosis (CS)

Multiple Conditions5

Total

1

 There is not a direct correlation between number of approved cases and 

number of paid claimants for two reasons: (1) more than one claimant can 

receive payment on a single approved case, and (2) some cases were approved 

prior to 9/30/2002, but payments were not issued. 

2

 Represents total lump sum compensation payments from EEOIC program 

inception to September 30, 2002.

Approved Cases1

1,885

1,386

6

458

238

32

36

4,041

Final Approvals

46.6%

34.3%

0.1%

11.3%

5.9%

0.8%

0.9%

100.0%

Paid Claimants1

2,826

1,521

4

419

N/A

30

38

4,838

($ thousands)

$90,472

194,800

600

59,637

N/A

4,500

4,550

$354,559

Compensation Paid

25.5%

54.9%

0.2%

16.8%

N/A

1.3%

1.3%

100.0%

Number of Percentage of Total Number of Compensation Paid2 Percentage of Total

Total

3

 RECA cases are not counted in any other category of this table.

4

 Cases approved for both CBD and BS are counted in the CBD category, only.

5

 Cases counted in the Multiple Conditions category were approved for CN and 

CBD, or CN and CS, or CBD and CS, or CN and BS, or CS and BS.

Reason for Denial

Employee Did Not Work at a Covered DOE Facility, Atomic Weapons Employer, or Beryllium Vendor 

During a Covered Time Period 

Claimed Condition Unrelated to Employment

Alleged Survivor Not an Eligible Beneficiary

Claimed Condition Not Covered Under Part B of EEOICPA

Dose Reconstruction Reveals the Probability That the Cancer is Related to Employment is Less

Than 50 Percent

Medical Evidence is Insufficient to Establish Entitlement

Total

Number of Cases

273

36

46

1,881

3

551

2,790
74

1

 Number of Federal and longshore cases that received counseling, placement 

assistance, and training services during the Fiscal Year.

2

 Total FECA cases for FY 1993; a breakdown by nurse and rehabilitation 

specialist, other than reemployments and rehabilitations that return to work, is 

not available.

75

Longshore

FECA Nurse FECA Rehabilitation Rehabilitation

OWCP Reemployment and Rehabilitation

FY 1993— FY 2002

(Cost in $ thousands)

Table E—1

FY

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Cases1

9,8832

5,530

10,574

14,235

15,515

15,261

691

1,541

3,275

4,623

5,735

5,884

Cost

$1,541

5,680

10,136

13,041

14,484

14,575

Cases1

9,8832

7,778

6,465

6,049

5,628

5,812

1,469

1,000

1,018

893

842

888

819

Cost

$14,662

13,500

13,163

12,672

11,827

11,399

Cases

1

2,201

2,028

1,815

1,535

1,606

1,444

364

352

408

357

309

298

Cost

$4,810

4,228

4,328

4,110

4,171

3,722

16,304

18,293

18,825

17,186

6,449

6,885

7,439

8,088

14,783

18,0853

20,413

21,769

5,441

4,835

4,633

4,431

907

747

736

708

11,814

10,119

9,568

7,860

1,464

1,469

1,446

1,384

273

245

265

256

4,895

4,595

5,121

4,801

Reemployments Rehabilitations Rehabilitations

OWCP Rehabilitation Table E1

3

 FY 2000 revised to include continuation-of-pay, costs of which are also 

included in all later years.

EEOICPA Table D5

Most Prevalent Non-Covered Medical Conditions,

EEOIC Program Inception Through September 30, 2002

Table D—5

Non-Covered Medical Condition

Other Lung Conditions 

Heart Failure/Heart Attacks/Hypertension

Asbestosis

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease; Emphysema

Renal Conditions (Kidney Failure; Kidney Stones)

Benign Tumors, Polyps, and Skin Spots

Hearing Loss

Neurological Disorder

Diabetes

Thyroid Conditions (e.g., Hypothyroidism)

All Other Non-Covered Conditions

No Condition Reported on Claim Form

For This Condition1

22

11

9

8

5

5

5

2

2

2

21

7

Percentage of All Denials

1

 Based on 1,881 cases that were denied because claimed condition was not 

covered under Part B of EEOICPA. Note: The sum of individual items may not 

equal 100 percent due to rounding.
Region III—Philadelphia

(Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, 

Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)

Regional Office

R. David Lotz, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

Curtis Center, Suite 780 West

170 S. Independence Mall West

Philadelphia, PA 19106-3313

215-861-5400

Philadelphia FECA District Office

William J. Staarman, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

Curtis Center, Suite 715 East

170 S. Independence Mall West

Philadelphia, PA 19106-3308

215-861-5408

Baltimore Longshore District Office

Emma Riley, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

The Federal Building, Room 410-B

31 Hopkins Plaza

Baltimore, MD 21201

410-962-3677

Norfolk Longshore District Office

Basil Voultsides, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

Federal Building, Room 212

200 Granby Mall

Norfolk, VA 23510

757-441-3071

Johnstown Black Lung District Office

Stuart Glassman, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Penn Traffic Building

319 Washington Street

Johnstown, PA 15901

814-533-4323, Ext 401 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3754)

77

U.S. Department of Labor

Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs

200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, D.C. 20210

202-693-0031

www.dol.gov/esa/owcp_org.htm

Director,

Office of Workers' Compensation Programs 

Shelby Hallmark

Deputy Director,

Office of Workers' Compensation Programs 

Diane Svenonious

Sharon Tyler, Special Assistant

Director,

Division of Planning, Policy and Standards 

Cecily Rayburn

Division of Federal Employees' Compensation

(www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/owcp/fecacont.htm)

Douglas C. Fitzgerald, Director

Edward Duncan, Debuty Director

Division of Coal Mine Workers' Compensation

(www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/owcp/bltable.htm)

James L. DeMarce, Director

Division of Longshore and Harbor Workers'

Compensation

(www.dol.gov/esa/owcp/dlhwc/lstable.htm)

Michael Niss, Director

Division of Energy Employees Occupational Illness

Compensation

(www.dol.gov/esa/regs/compliance/owcp/eeoicp/main.htm)

Peter M. Turcic, Director

Roberta Mosier, Debuty Director

Region I /II—Northeast

(Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,

New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, 

Rhode Island, Vermont, Virgin Islands)

Regional Office (New York)

Jaye Weisman, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

201 Varick Street, Room 750

New York, NY 10014

646-264-3100

New York FECA District Office

Louis Cruz, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

201 Varick Street, Room 750

New York, NY 10014-0566

646-264-3046

New York Longshore District Office

Richard V. Robilotti, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

201 Varick Street, Room 750

Post Office Box 249

New York, NY 10014-0249

646-264-3010

Boston FECA District Office

William Fisher, Acting District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

JFK Federal Building, Room E-260

Boston, MA 02203

617-624-6677

Boston Longshore District Office

David Groeneveld, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

JFK Federal Building, Room E-260

Boston, MA 02203

617-624-6750

76

Office

Directory
78 79

Wilkes-Barre Black Lung District Office

Maribeth Girton, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

100 N. Wilkes-Barre Blvd., Room 300 A

Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702

570-826-6457 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3755)

Charleston Black Lung District Office

Richard Hanna, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Charleston Federal Center, Suite 110

500 Quarries Street

Charleston, WV 25301

304-347-7100 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3749)

Greensburg Black Lung District Office

Colleen Smalley, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Wellington Square, Suite 405

1225 South Main Street

Greensburg, PA 15601

724-836-7230 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3753)

Parkersburg Black Lung Sub-District Office

Loretta Bird, Supervisory Claims Examiner

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Federal Building, Suite 3116

425 Juliana Street

Parkersburg, WV 26101

304-420-6385 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3751)

DCMWC Field Stations

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Mine Safety & Health Academy, Rm. G-100

Airport Road

Beckley, WV 25802

304-255-6195

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

601 Federal Street

Bluefield, WV 24701

304-325-2164

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Randolph Co. Senior Citizens' Center

Fifth and Railroad Avenue

Elkins, WV 26241

304-636-4747

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

513 Dingess Street

P.O. Office Box 1979

Logan, WV 25601

304-752-9514

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Post Office Box 790

Uneeda, WV 25205

304-369-6050

U.S. Department of Labor

ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

Coal Mine Safety & Health District 3

5012 Mountaineer Mall

Morgantown, WV 26505

304-291-4277

Region IV—Southeast

(Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, 

North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee)

Regional Office

Richard A. Brettell, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

214 North Hogan Street, Room 1026

Jacksonville, FL 32202

904-357-4725

Jacksonville FECA District Office

Magdalena Fernandez, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

400 West Bay Street, Room 826

Jacksonville, FL 32202

904-357-4777

Jacksonville Longshore District Office

Charles Lee, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

Edward Ball Bldg., Suite 905, 9th Floor

214 North Hogan Street

Jacksonville, FL 32202

904-357-4788

Jacksonville Energy District Office

William C. Franson, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DEEOIC

214 North Hogan Street, Suite 910

Jacksonville, FL 32202

904-357-4705 (Toll-Free 1-877-336-4272)

EEOICPA Resource Center (Paducah Site)

Jean Gross, Office Manager

Barkely Center, Unit 125

125 Memorial Drive

Paducah, KY 42001

270-534-0599 (Toll-Free 1-866-534-0599)

paducah.center@eh.doe.gov

EEOICPA Resource Center (Savannah River Site)

James Kirr, Office Manager

1708 Bunting Drive

North Augusta, SC 29841

803-279-2728 (Toll-Free 1-866-666-4606)

srs.center@eh.doe.gov 

EEOICPA Resource Center (Oak Ridge Site)

Shirley White, Office Manager

Jackson Plaza Office Complex

800 Oak Ridge Turnpike - Suite C 103

Oak Ridge, TN 37803

865-481-0411 (Toll-Free 1-866-481-0411)

or.center@eh.doe.gov

Pikeville Black Lung District Office

Harry Skidmore, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

164 Main Street, Suite 508

Pikeville, KY 41501

606-432-0116 (Toll-Free 1-800-366-4599)

Mt. Sterling Black Lung Sub-District Office

Brenda K. Jamison, Assistant District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

402 Campbell Way

Mt. Sterling, KY 40353

859-498-9700 (Toll-Free 1-800-366-4628)

Office Directory
80 81

Region V/VII—Midwest

(Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, 

Missouri, Nebrasksa, Ohio, Wisconsin)

Regional Office (Chicago)

Nancy Jenson, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

230 South Dearborn Street, Room 800

Chicago, IL 60604

312-596-7131

Chicago FECA District Office

Joan Rosel, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

230 South Dearborn Street, Room 800

Chicago, IL 60604

312-596-7134

Cleveland FECA District Office

Robert M. Sullivan, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

1240 East Ninth Street, Room 851

Cleveland, OH 44199

216-357-5390

Cleveland Energy District Office

Annette Prindle, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DEEOIC

North Point Tower

1001 Lakeside Avenue, Suite 350

Cleveland, OH 44114

216-802-1300 (Toll-Free 1-888-859-7211)

EEOICPA Resource Center (Portsmouth Site)

Kevin Clausing, Office Manager

4320 Old Scioto Trail

Portsmouth, OH 45662

740-353-6993 (Toll-Free 1-866-363-6993)

Portsmouth.center@eh.doe.gov

Columbus Black Lung District Office

Don Dopps, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

1160 Dublin Road, Suite 300

Columbus, OH 43215

614-469-5227 (Toll-Free 1-800-347-3771)

Kansas City FECA District Office

Lois Maxwell, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

City Center Square

1100 Main Street, Suite 750

Kansas City, MO 64105

816-502-0344

Region VI/VIII—Southwest

(Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, 

North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, 

Wyoming)

Regional Office

E. Martin Walker, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

525 South Griffin Street, Room 407

Dallas, TX 75202

972-850-2409

Dallas FECA District Office

Frances Memmolo, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

525 South Griffin Street, Room 100

Dallas, TX 75202

972-850-2330

Houston Longshore District Office

Chris Gleasman, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

8866 Gulf Freeway, Suite 140

Houston, TX 77017

713-943-1605

New Orleans Longshore District Office

David Duhon, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

701 Loyola Avenue, Room 13032

New Orleans, LA 70113

504-589-2671

Sub-Regional Office (Denver)

Robert Mansanares, Deputy Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

1999 Broadway, Suite 600

P.O. Box 46550

Denver, CO 80201-6550

720-264-3160

Denver FECA District Office 

Shirley Bridge, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

1999 Broadway, Suite 600

Denver, CO 80202-6550

720-264-3046

Denver Black Lung District Office

Debra Thurston, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DCMWC

1999 Broadway, Suite 690

P.O. Box 46550

Denver, CO 80202-6550

720-264-3100 (Toll-Free 1-800-366-4612)

Denver Energy District Office

Kevin Peterson, District Director 

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DEEOIC

1999 Broadway, Suite 1120

P.O. Box 46550

Denver, CO 80201-6550

720-264-3060 (Toll-Free 1-888-805-3389)

EEOICPA Resource Center (Rocky Flats Site)

Ray Malito, Office Manager

8758 Wolff Court, Suite 201

Westminster, CO 80031

720-540-4977 (Toll-Free 1-866-540-4977)

denver.center@eh.doe.gov

EEOICPA Resource Center (Espanola Site)

Ray Malito, Office Manager

412 Paseo De Onate, Suite D

Espanola, NM 87532

505-747-6766 (Toll-Free 1-866-272-3622)

Espanola.center@eh.doe.gov

Office Directory
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Region IX/X—Pacific

(Alaska, Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, 

Nevada, Oregon, Washington)

Regional Office (San Francisco)

Edward Bounds, Regional Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP

71 Stevenson Street, Room 1705

San Francisco, CA 94105

415-848-6880

San Francisco FECA District Office

Andy Tharp, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

71 Stevenson Street, Box 305

San Francisco, CA 94105

415-848-6700

San Francisco Longshore District Office

R. Todd Bruininks, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

71 Stevenson Street, Room 1705

Post Office Box 193770

San Francisco, CA 94119-3770

415-848-6675

Long Beach Longshore District Office

Eric Richardson, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

401 East Ocean Blvd., Suite 720

Long Beach, CA 90802

562-980-3577

Honolulu Longshore Sub-District Office

R. Todd Bruininks, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

300 Ala Moana Blvd., Room 5-135

Post Office Box 50209

Honolulu, HI 96850

808-541-1983

Seattle FECA District Office

Marcus Tapia, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

1111 Third Avenue, Suite 615

Seattle, WA 98101-3212

206-398-8220

Seattle Longshore District Office

Karen Staats, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DLHWC

1111 Third Avenue, Suite 620

Seattle, WA 98101-3212

206-398-8255

l

Seattle Energy District Office

Christy Long, District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DEEOIC

719 2nd Avenue, Suite 601

Seattle, WA 98104

206-373-6750 (Toll-Free 1-888-805-3401)

EEOICPA Resource Center (Alaska Site)

Don Weber, Office Manager

2501 Commercial Drive

Anchorage, AK 99501

907-258-4070 (Toll-Free 1-888-908-4070)

doecomp@acsalaska.net

EEOICPA Resource Center (Idaho Falls Site)

Bertha Jones, Office Manager

1820 East 17th Street, Suite 375

Exchange Plaza

Idaho Falls, ID 83404

208-523-0158 (Toll-Free 1-800-861-8608)

Idaho.center@eh.doe.gov

EEOICPA Resource Center (Las Vegas Site)

John Krachenfels, Office Manager

Flamingo Executive Park, Suite W-156

1050 East Flamingo Road

Las Vegas, NV 89119

702-697-0841 (Toll-Free 1-866-697-0841)

Vegas.center@eh.doe.gov

EEOICPA Resource Center (Hanford Site)

Eunice Godfrey, Office Manager

303 Bradley Blvd., Ste.104

Richland, WA 99352

509-946-3333 (Toll-Free 1-888-654-0014)

hanford.center@eh.doe.gov

National Operations Office

(District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia,

overseas cases)

Patricia Greene, Acting District Director

U.S. Department of Labor, ESA/OWCP/DFEC

National Operations Office

800 N. Capitol St., NW.

Room 800

Washington, DC 20211

202-513-6816

83

Office Directory