As the 80th anniversary of the Trinity Test approaches this week, New Mexico radiation exposure victims are closer than ever to receiving federal compensation, but face new threats to their healthcare access from proposed Medicaid cuts.
Senator Ben Ray Luján called for federal agencies to quickly establish guidelines for the expanded Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA) program, which was included in the Republican reconciliation bill after years of advocacy by New Mexico downwinders and uranium workers.
“Today I’m calling on Attorney General Pam Bondi and Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer to quickly get guidance out to New Mexicans who qualify for RECA, so that those who need assistance can quickly apply,” Luján said during a virtual press conference with radiation exposure advocates.
The push for RECA expansion comes as New Mexico prepares to mark the 80th anniversary of the Trinity Test on July 16, 1945, the world’s first nuclear weapons test that exposed thousands of residents to dangerous radiation without warning or evacuation.
Three historic commemoration events are planned for July 16: a sign dedication at the Trinity Site entrance at 11 a.m., a mass with all three New Mexico bishops in Tularosa at 6 p.m. and a candlelight vigil at 8 p.m., where advocates will read the names of more than 1,000 people who died from radiation-related illnesses.
“This is historic. All three bishops have never been in Tularosa or any other place together to actually preside over a mass,” said Tina Cordova, co-founder of the Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium and cancer survivor who has led the 20-year fight for RECA expansion.
The RECA expansion, included in the controversial reconciliation bill after being stripped from the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act, will provide $100,000 compensation to downwinders and uranium workers previously excluded from the program.
Key expansions include:
- New Mexico downwinders affected by the Trinity Test
- Post-1971 uranium mine workers (current RECA only covers those who worked before 1971)
- Additional counties in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, and other states
- Communities affected by Manhattan Project waste disposal
Since 1990, RECA has approved 41,900 claims totaling $2.69 billion nationwide, but New Mexico Trinity Test victims were never included despite suffering similar health impacts to those already covered.
The expansion is particularly significant for New Mexico’s post-1971 uranium workers, who research shows have similar respiratory disease rates to workers from the original RECA era but receive no compensation or medical benefits.
“We have the documentation of that from 1,500 health surveys over the last 18 years,” Cordova said during the press conference.
New Mexico has approximately 1,100 uranium mining sites, many on tribal lands, with hundreds of former workers suffering from cancers and lung diseases linked to radiation exposure.
However, the same reconciliation bill that includes RECA expansion also proposes massive Medicaid cuts that advocates warn could eliminate healthcare access for the very people the program is meant to help.
“If not for Medicaid, we die in the streets,” Cordova said, noting that many radiation victims rely on Medicaid after becoming too sick to work. “That is our fear—that now there are many that while we will get a one-time payment of $100,000, it may not be enough to handle their medical needs.”
The proposed cuts could particularly impact New Mexico, where 836,000 people—nearly 40% of the state’s population—rely on Medicaid. New Mexico has eight safety-net hospitals that could see Medicaid revenues reduced by 35% and operating margins decline significantly, according to healthcare policy analysts.
Luján warned that the healthcare cuts could force rural hospital closures across states where RECA victims live.
“It’s already been announced in Nebraska, in Maine and in Oklahoma that several rural clinics in those particular states are slated to be closed,” he said.
The senator noted that even Republican colleagues have expressed concerns about the bill’s impact on RECA victims’ healthcare access, citing Senator Josh Hawley’s alarm “about RECA victims not being able to access hospitals because of this bill.”
During the press conference, advocates also warned community members about potential scams as the program launches.
“I’m asking that our people be very careful. There are attorneys, scammers, people that are saying they want to help our people,” said Loretta Anderson, liaison for the Southwestern Uranium Miners Coalition. “You don’t need to pay for this. We have the RESEP program that has been doing this for years.”
The National Radiation Exposure Screening and Education Program provides free medical screening and assistance with RECA claims in New Mexico and other affected states.
The expanded RECA program must now be implemented by the Department of Justice, which administers the program. No timeline has been provided for when applications will be accepted.
“We still have a lot of work to do,” Cordova said. “The two-year extension will not be enough for us to get everybody enrolled that should be enrolled.”
The program is currently set to expire in June 2030 under the reconciliation bill, though advocates continue pushing for longer extensions and inclusion of additional affected communities.
For assistance with RECA claims, New Mexicans can contact the RESEP program or the state’s Office of Nuclear Workers Advocacy at nmenv.onwa@emnrd.nm.gov.