Veterans Benefits Programs for U.S. Nuclear Test Participants

and Hiroshima/Nagasaki Occupation Forces

(Toll-Free Helpline: 800-462-3683)

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is the Department of Defense (DOD) executive agent for the 

Nuclear Test Personnel Review (NTPR) Program, which serves veterans who participated in U.S. nuclear 

tests, served with the U.S. occupation forces of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, or were prisoners of war in 

Japan at the conclusion of World War II. The primary purpose of the NTPR Program is to provide participation 

data and radiation dose information for veterans. It also informs veterans of health care availability and 

possible compensation benefits provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the Department of 

Justice (DOJ).

Compensation Regulations

Various public laws as codified by Title 38, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 3 (38 CFR 3), authorizes VA to 

provide medical care and compensation benefits to confirmed test participants who contracted specified 

diseases after their participation, as well as dependency and indemnity compensation to certain survivors. 

Other public laws as codified by 28 CFR 79 authorizes the DOJ to provide compensation for confirmed 

participants who contracted specified diseases after their participation in above-ground nuclear testing. 

VA Medical Care

All eligible veterans, as defined above, may participate in the Ionizing Radiation Registry (IRR) Program, which 

consists of three parts:

1. A complete medical history, physical examination, and standard diagnostic tests, as well as additional 

specialized tests and consultations, if needed. The IRR Program fulfills a basic clinical care purpose by 

offering eligible veterans a free health examination which potentially serves as an entry point for VA care.

2. Eligible veterans may also receive special treatment for radiogenic diseases currently covered by VA under 

federal regulations (38 CFR 3.309 and 3.311). 

3. Veterans can receive free assistance in submitting claims by contacting one of the veterans’ service 

organizations. Regional VA offices may be contacted directly through the VA toll-free helpline at 

(800) 827-1000. For additional details on VA medical care, please see the VA Ionizing Radiation 

Information webpage (http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/index.asp).
2

Filing Claims

Eligible veterans may file a claim under one or more of the following compensation programs:

VA presumptive program:

Several public laws, as codified in 38 CFR 3.309, authorize VA to grant compensation for 22 types of cancers 

to confirmed participants. To establish eligibility under this law, veterans must contact VA to open a claim, and 

provide documentation (identified by VA) to VA to support the claim. Upon receipt, VA will submit a request to 

the NTPR Program to confirm the veteran’s participation. However, veterans who are not confirmed 

participants are not entitled to VA compensation under this program.

VA non-presumptive program:

Public laws, as codified in 38 CFR 3.311, provide for VA service connection and benefits for roughly 25 

specified disease categories, including cancer not specifically identified in 38 CFR 3.309. These regulations 

specify rules for adjudicating VA claims and establish a panel of experts for addressing scientific issues 

regarding the relationship between diseases and radiation exposure. If a claimed disease is not one of the 

diseases listed in 38 CFR 3.311, the veteran must cite competent scientific or medical evidence demonstrating 

a relationship between radiation exposure and the disease before the claim can be considered under this 

regulation.

Veterans initiating a claim under this regulation do not require prior confirmation of participation or dose 

information from the NTPR Program. To initiate a claim, veterans must contact VA to open a claim, and 

provide documentation (identified by VA) to VA to support the claim. Upon receipt, VA will submit a request to

the NTPR Program to confirm the veteran’s participation and provide a radiation dose estimate. The NTPR 

Program will respond by providing participant and associated radiation dose information, where applicable. 

Per 38 CFR 3.311(a)(4), VA may concede a veteran’s presence at an nuclear test site (or Hiroshima/Nagasaki) 

if the NTPR Program, through military records, is unable to establish the veteran’s presence at, or absence 

from, the site. If VA concedes a veteran’s presence, it will request a radiation dose estimate from the NTPR 

Program.

Veterans are not required to request confirmation of participation or dose information from the NTPR Program 

prior to initiating a VA claim. To initiate a claim, veterans must contact VA (800-827-1000 or 

http://www.va.gov/).

DOJ compensation program:

In 1990, Congress passed the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), which provides for 

compassionate payments to individuals (or their surviving beneficiaries) who contracted certain diseases as a 

result of their exposure to ionizing radiation from U.S. above-ground nuclear testing. DOJ administers RECA 

as codified in 28 CFR 79.

There are several categories of claimants under RECA, including on-site participants, downwinders, uranium 

miners, uranium millers, and ore transporters. To receive compensation, a claimant must meet the eligibility 

criteria. A claimant must have developed one of the illnesses listed in 28 CFR 79 and been an on-site 

participant in specific nuclear tests, establish residence in a specified area during a specified time period 

(downwinder), or have been exposed to specified levels of radiation from uranium processing activities. 

Presence may be established through a variety of records, as listed in 28 CFR 79.13. Written medical 

documentation is required in all cases to prove that the claimant suffers (or suffered) from any of the conditions 

listed in 28 CFR 79.
3

Veterans initiating a DOJ claim for on-site participation under this regulation are not required to request 

confirmation of participation from the NTPR Program. To initiate a claim, veterans must contact DOJ:

Radiation Exposure Compensation Program

Department of Justice

P.O. Box 146

Washington, DC 20044-0146

800-729-7327

http://www.justice.gov/civil/common/reca

Upon receipt, DOJ will submit a request to the NTPR Program to confirm the veteran’s participation. 

DOJ will determine participation status based upon the input from the NTPR Program. The scope of the 

NTPR Program only includes assisting DOJ with the verification of participation. Uranium processing and 

downwinder claims do not fall within the scope of the NTPR Program.

Second Opinions

Per 38 CFR 3.311(a)(3), a veteran may obtain a second opinion of his reconstructed dose from a credible

source to compare against the NTPR dose estimate. If one estimate is at least double the other, VA is 

required to refer both estimates to an independent expert (selected by the Director of the National Institutes of 

Health), who will then prepare a separate radiation dose estimate for consideration in adjudication of the claim.

NTPR Inquiries

Individuals seeking information about the NTPR Program can address their inquiries to:

Defense Threat Reduction Agency

ATTN: RD-NTS (NTPR)

8725 John J. Kingman Road, Stop 6201

Fort Belvoir, Virginia 22060-6201

(800) 462-3683

E-mail: dtra-ntpr@mail.mil

http://www.dtra.mil/DTRA-Mission/Reference-Documents/NTPR-info/

September 2021