Last summer was the first time individuals in Missouri impacted by the U.S. government’s toxic radiation waste could apply for compensation, and a new bipartisan bill introduced in Congress on Monday would expand who qualifies — including parents whose children died due to radiation exposure.
The House bill was introduced by Del. James Moylan, R-Guam. Congressman Wesley Bell, D-St. Louis County, is a co-sponsor. He said the bill adds at least nine ZIP codes in the St. Louis region — 63106, 63107, 63112, 63113, 63115, 63120, 63133, 63136 and 63137. There are currently 21 qualifying Missouri ZIP codes.
Millions of dollars has been paid out so far to St. Louis-area residents affected by radioactive waste left over from the Manhattan Project in the 1970s — a top-secret federal government program established to create the world’s first atomic bombs during World War II. Deteriorating barrels of waste stored at St. Louis Lambert International Airport polluted the site and eventually leaked into Coldwater Creek, a 19-mile tributary of the Missouri River in north St. Louis County. Radioactive material and debris were also dumped in a quarry in Weldon Spring, close to the Missouri River.
“Long before I got to Congress, I heard from St. Louisans about how they had been affected by the radioactive contamination from the Manhattan Project, and I made a promise — those folks endured decades of health crises, economic struggles and profound neglect by the very government that should be protecting them,” Bell said during a joint press conference with Moylan and other advocates last month.
The bill also eliminates the age limit for leukemia patients. Right now, people with leukemia must have had initial exposure starting at 20 years old and contracted the disease at least two years after first exposure. The new bill also would allow parents to apply for compensation on behalf of their children who died of radiation exposure.
Recently, St. Louis Public Radio heard from parents who said they were disheartened to learn they didn’t qualify for compensation after losing their children to cancer — despite living in qualifying ZIP codes and near the West Lake Landfill in Bridgeton, a 200-acre site where the Cotter Corp. illegally dumped radioactive waste from the Manhattan Project.
The bill also expands the list of qualifying illnesses to include cervical cancer, prostate cancer, rectal cancer, uterine cancer, chronic lymphocytic leukemia and skin cancer.
It increases the compensation amount, too.
As it stands, individuals who developed certain diseases after being exposed to radiation from the U.S. nuclear weapons program can receive up to $50,000. And their surviving spouses and children can apply to receive up to $25,000. But under the new legislation, claimants would be eligible for up to $150,000 in compensation. Those who have already been approved for compensation under the current program would be eligible to receive the difference.
The expansion of RECA last year to include Missouri came after more than 10 years of advocacy by local groups including Just Moms STL. It was revived in July 2025 following efforts led by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri.
Christen Commuso, a policy specialist at the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, said it’s time to push even harder.
“I am extremely hopeful that this bill will move forward. I think the expansion last year proved that there’s always reason for hope in this,” Commuso said. “I know that there are other sites within Missouri that also had a part in the nuclear weapons program. So we’re going to keep researching those. As long as we’re learning new things, we’re going to keep pushing for everybody to be included.”
Missourians can apply for RECA compensation under the current program through December 2027.
In addition to expansion in the St. Louis region, the bill broadens eligibility beyond Idaho, New Mexico, Utah and select counties to fully cover Arizona, Colorado, Guam, Montana and Nevada.
This story was published with permission as part of a content-sharing partnership between The St. Louis American and St. Louis Public Radio. Visit stlpr.org to view the original version.