HHS Special Exposure Cohort Determination: 

Hanger 481, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico 

HHS Determination Concerning a Petition to Add Members to the 

Special Exposure Cohort 

under the 

Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 

Determination Concerning a Petition for Employees from 

Hanger 481 

Kirtland Air Force Base 

Albuquerque, New Mexico
HHS Special Exposure Cohort Determination: 

Hanger 481, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico 

I. Determination 

I, Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary), have determined 

that the employees defined in Section II of this report do not meet the statutory criteria for 

addition to the Special Exposure Cohort (SEC), as authorized under the Energy Employees 

Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000 (EEOICPA), 42 U.S.C. § 7384q. 

__May 11, 2012______ _[Signature on file]_______________ 

 Date Kathleen Sebelius 

II. Employee Class Definition 

All employees who worked at Hangar 481, Kirtland Air Force Base (AFB), from 

March 1, 1989 through February 29, 1996. 

III. Decision Criteria and Recommendations 

Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 7384q, to designate a class for addition to the SEC, the Secretary 

must determine, upon recommendation of the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker 

Health (Board), that 

(1) it is not feasible to estimate with sufficient accuracy the radiation dose that the class 

received; and 

(2) there is a reasonable likelihood that such radiation dose may have endangered the 

health of members of the class. 

The SEC final rule states in 42 C.F.R. § 83.13(c)(1) that it is feasible in two situations to 

estimate the radiation dose that the class received with sufficient accuracy. First, the rule 

states that radiation doses may be estimated with sufficient accuracy if NIOSH has 

established that it has access to sufficient information to estimate the maximum radiation 

dose for every type of cancer for which radiation doses are reconstructed that could have 

been incurred under plausible circumstances by any member of the class. Alternatively, 

radiation doses may be estimated with sufficient accuracy if NIOSH has established that it 

has access to sufficient information to estimate the radiation doses of members of the class 

more precisely than a maximum dose estimate. 

In a letter received by the Secretary on April 11, 2012, the Board, pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 

7384q, agreed with the following NIOSH findings, effectively advising the Secretary that 

radiation dose can be reconstructed with sufficient accuracy for certain Hanger 481, Kirtland 

Air Forces Base employees in accordance with provisions of EEOICPA and the SEC final 

rule. 
HHS Special Exposure Cohort Determination: 

Hanger 481, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico 

IV. Determination Findings 

Feasibility of Estimating Radiation Doses with Sufficient Accuracy 

The Secretary established the feasibility determination for the class of employees covered 

by this report based upon the findings summarized below. 

 NIOSH determined that no unsealed radioactive materials were handled nor were 

radioactive materials stored at the Hangar 481 facility. Radioactive materials handled 

by workers at Hangar 481 were in sealed DOT-compliant containers and monitored 

in accordance with DOT regulations to verify radiation and contamination levels on 

package exteriors. 

 Based on the available information on the radiological program and potential for 

internal exposure sources, NIOSH concluded that internal radiological exposures to 

Ross Aviation employees resulting from services rendered for the DOE at Hangar 

481 are unlikely to have occurred. 

 Sandia National Laboratories, being an adjacent facility, was used to provide a 

bounding estimate of the dose from ambient environmental internal dose during the 

covered period. 

 External dose records exist for many Ross Aviation personnel and the Radiation 

Exposure Information and Reporting System (REIRS) reported data have been 

verified using Eberline dosimetry data from 1990-1994. The individual results of 

these records or use of the highest dose received by monitored personnel, 

adequately bounds external dose for unmonitored workers. 

 Responses to questions and interviews with former Hangar 481 workers indicate that 

annual occupational X-ray examinations were not performed at Hangar 481. Based 

on this information, medical X-ray dose for Hangar 481 personnel is not a covered 

exposure to be included in the dose reconstruction. Therefore, medical X-ray dose is 

not a consideration for workers at Hangar 481. 

 After reviewing the additional information and data obtained subsequent to the 

original evaluation, NIOSH has concluded that the original feasibility determination is 

confirmed. Specifically, given the availability of TLD data for the covered years of 

employment, it is feasible to bound the evaluated worker class external dose 

(reconstruct external doses with sufficient accuracy). The TLD data available from 

1989 through 1995 is believed to adequately assess the radiological exposures at 

Hangar 481, Kirtland AFB during this timeframe and is, therefore, adequate for 

performing dose reconstructions. Using the methods described in ORAUT-OTIB0008, dose for 1996 can be over estimated by using the highest individual dosimetry 

data for all previous covered years (1989 through 1995). 
HHS Special Exposure Cohort Determination: 

Hanger 481, Kirtland Air Force Base, Albuquerque, New Mexico 

• NIOSH determined that it has access to sufficient Hanger 481, Kirtland Air Force 

Base information to either (1) estimate the maximum internal and external radiation 

dose for every type of cancer for which radiation doses are reconstructed that could 

have been incurred under plausible circumstances by any member of the evaluated 

class; or (2) estimate the internal and external radiation doses to members of the 

evaluated class more precisely than a maximum dose estimate. 

• The Board concurred with the NIOSH findings. 

Health Endangerment 

Because the Secretary established that it is feasible to estimate with sufficient accuracy the 

radiation doses encountered by all employees who worked at Hangar 481, Kirtland Air Force 

Base (AFB), from March 1, 1989 through February 29, 1996, a determination of health 

endangerment is not required. 

V. Effect of the Determination 

Members of the class of employees covered by this determination and their survivors 

continue to be eligible to submit claims for compensation under EEOICPA. As required for 

cancer claims covering other DOE and Atomic Weapons Employer employees (or Atomic 

Weapons Employees) not included in the SEC, qualified cancer claims under Part B of 

EEOICPA for members of this class will be adjudicated by the Department of Labor, in part 

on the basis of radiation dose reconstructions which will be conducted by NIOSH. 

VI. Administrative Review of Determination 

The determination provided in this report may be subject to an administrative review within 

HHS, pursuant to 42 C.F.R. § 83.18(a). On the basis of such a review, if the Secretary 

decides to designate the class of employees covered by this determination, in part or in 

whole, as an addition to the SEC, the Secretary would transmit a new report to Congress 

providing the designation and the criteria and findings on which the decision was based.