Are you an Idaho Downwinder? Here’s how to know, and details on compensation
Idaho residents are now eligible to apply for compensation if they lived in the state when the government conducted nuclear tests and have since developed a qualifying cancer.
The provision adding Idaho to the Radiation Compensation Exposure Act, a federal law that “provides partial restitution” to people who developed certain illnesses after being exposed to radiation from the U.S. nuclear weapons program, was a part of President Donald Trump’s “One Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Idaho’s inclusion comes after decades of advocacy from Idaho residents and officials.
Between 1951 and 1962, the federal government conducted nuclear tests in Nevada. The radiation affected people up to hundreds of miles away in Idaho and other surrounding states. Most of the tests were underground, but about 100 were atmospheric tests where the “atomic weapons exploded at or above ground level, resulting in radioactive material being released into the atmosphere,” according to a report prepared by the Congressional Research Service.
For decades, the government offered some compensation to people with qualifying illnesses who had participated in atomic weapons testing or lived in certain areas when the tests occurred. But Idaho was finally included last year.
Now, through December 2027, people across Idaho can apply for $100,000 in compensation if they or a family member had one of the eligible cancers and lived in the state between 1951 and 1962. Survivors can apply for equal shares of the payment if the person has died.
How to know if you qualify
Downwinders are defined as people who have “developed certain cancers after presumed exposure to radiation released during the atmospheric nuclear tests conducted within the United States.”
To qualify for compensation in Idaho, people must have been living in the state for one year between Jan. 21, 1951, and Nov. 6, 1962, or have been in Idaho for the entire period from June 30, 1962, through July 31, 1962.
A Downwinder must then show they were diagnosed with one of the qualifying diseases, which include:
- Leukemia
- Multiple Myeloma
- Lymphomas (other than Hodgkin’s disease)
- Primary cancer of the thyroid
- Primary cancer of the male or female breast
- Primary cancer of the esophagus
- Primary cancer of the stomach
- Primary cancer of the pharynx
- Primary cancer of the small intestine
- Primary cancer of the pancreas
- Primary cancer of the bile ducts
- Primary cancer of the gall bladder
- Primary cancer of the salivary gland
- Primary cancer of the urinary bladder
- Primary cancer of the brain
- Primary cancer of the colon
- Primary cancer of the ovary
- Primary cancer of the liver (except if cirrhosis or hepatitis B is indicated)
- Primary cancer of the lung
How to get help
People can file their claims online, or fill out a paper application, and must have certified documents such as proof of residence, medical records documenting a diagnosis and identification documents. Application workshops on filing a claim will be held in Boise on May 1-2 at the Idaho State Museum in Julia Davis Park. People are asked to attend the sessions based on the last name of the person who became ill, but can attend at any time they need.
A–F: May 1, 9–11 a.m. G–L: May 1, 1–3 p.m. M–S: May 2, 9–11 a.m. T–Z: May 2, 1–3 p.m.
People can fill out the claims on their own; they don’t need attorneys to help. Tona Henderson, an Idaho resident who has worked for decades to get Idaho included in the program, warned of scammers charging people to help file claims.
Those with questions can also find help on two Facebook pages: Idaho Downwinders and Idaho Downwinders Support Group.
