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HR 2573 111th Congress House

Atomic Veterans Relief Act

Official title: To amend title 38, United States Code, to revise the eligibility criteria for presumption of service-connection of certain diseases and disabilities for vetera… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To amend title 38, United States Code, to revise the eligibility criteria for presumption of service-connection of certain diseases and disabilities for veterans exposed to ionizing radiation during military service, and for other purposes.

Introduced: September 10, 2009 See on congress.gov
Armed Forces and National Security Administrative law and regulatory proceduresDepartment of Veterans AffairsDisability assistanceEvidence and witnesses
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
Nuclear weaponsRadioactive wastes and releasesVeterans' pensions and compensation
This bill died when the 111th Congress ended
It never became law before the 111th Congress (2009–2010) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
May 22, 2009
Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.
May 21, 2009
Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
May 21, 2009
Introduced in House
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 Latest action May 22, 2009

Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Atomic Veterans Relief Act - Includes within the definition of a "radiation-risk activity" for purposes of eligibility for veterans' disability compensation the exposure at any time to ionizing radiation from undetonated weapons or residual contamination resulting from a nuclear detonation.

Directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to include in regulations pertaining to the service-connection of veterans' disabilities additional provisions to ensure, in the case of a claim by a radiation-exposed veteran for service-connection of a nonpresumptive disability, that the procedures for establishment of whether the disability is service-connected and which require the mathematical calculation of the level of exposure of the veteran to the ionizing radiation (commonly referred to as dose reconstruction) also require the Secretary to, among other things: (1) determine the facts and circumstances of the exposure while presuming the veteran's recitation of the event as correct, unless clear and convincing evidence establishes otherwise; and (2) obtain a reconstructed dose based on specific facts and circumstances established by the evidence.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 2573: Atomic Veterans Relief Act. 111th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-2573/
MLA
"H.R. 2573: Atomic Veterans Relief Act." 111th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-2573/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 2573, 111th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-2573/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 2573: Atomic Veterans Relief Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/111-HR-2573/)
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