What Is a Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) and Why Does This Matter?

The EEOICPA established a Special Exposure Cohort (SEC) for certain classes of employees. The SEC allows eligible claimants to be compensated without the completion of a NIOSH radiation dose reconstruction or determination of the probability of causation. To qualify for compensation as a member of an SEC class, a covered employee must have at least one of the 22 specified cancers and worked for a specified period of time at one of the SEC designated work sites.

If a worker qualifies under guidelines for an SEC, the procedure is more expedient, there is a presumption that radiation was the likely cause for the medical condition, and thereby, the burden of proof is lessened on the claimant.