July 20, 2023

Manchin Reintroduces Relief for Survivors of Miners Act

Legislation would help surviving family members of miners lost to Black Lung disease access benefits, legal representation

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mark Warner (D-VA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA) and John Fetterman (D-PA) reintroduced the Relief for Survivors of Miners Act to ease the burden on surviving family members of miners who pass away due to Black Lung disease. Due to unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles, survivors of deceased miners often face difficulties in securing the benefits to which they are entitled, and this legislation would ease those restrictions.

“For generations, our brave miners and their families have made immense sacrifices to power West Virginia and America to greatness. Far too often, the surviving family members of coal miners lost to Black Lung disease face difficulties in securing the benefits they are entitled to,” said Senator Manchin. “I’m proud to reintroduce the Relief for Survivors of Miners Act, which will help cut through the bureaucratic red tape that can delay access to these benefits, as well as improve access to legal representation for miners and their survivors. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to help pass this commonsense legislation that supports our coal miners and their families who have given so much to our nation.”

“The last thing grieving families in Virginia’s mining communities should have to worry about is whether or not they’ll be able to put food on the table or a roof over their heads,” said Senator Warner. “But too often survivors of miners who have lost their lives to Black Lung are denied benefits they deserve because of unfair and unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles. The Relief for Survivors of Miners Act will alleviate this burden for families going through the worst time in their lives.”

“Virginia’s mining communities have made tremendous sacrifices to power our nation, and the families of miners who lost their lives to Black Lung disease deserve our support,” said Senator Kaine. “This bill is critical to removing unnecessary red tape that has prevented families from accessing benefits and expanding resources to help families secure the support they need.”

“Ohio miners have put their health at risk for years to power our country – and, unfortunately, too many of those miners have lost their lives because of Black Lung disease, leaving loved ones to worry about how they’ll be able to make ends meet,” said Senator Brown. “The Relief for Survivors of Miners Act will ensure these miners’ families don’t have to navigate an interminable claims process just to get the benefits they have earned.”

“For decades, our country has relied on coal miners to power our factories and heat our homes. Many coal workers risked their lives and their long-term health to do the job of powering years of prosperity and Congress has an obligation to support them, just as they’ve supported us,” said Senator Casey. “The Relief for Survivors of Miners Act will ease access to benefits and support services for the families of miners that have passed away from illnesses linked to their time in the mines. Coal miners have pushed our country forward, and I’ll keep fighting to make sure they and their families aren’t left behind.”

“When the families of coal miners are dealing with the pain and grief of losing someone, the last thing we should ask them to deal with is red tape and bureaucracy,” said Senator Fetterman. “Coal miners do dangerous and important work, with a real risk of Black Lung and other serious health impacts. Survivors deserve to receive their benefits as quickly and easily as possible, and that’s what this bill would do.”

The Black Lung Benefits Act (BLBA), passed in 1976, provides monthly benefits to eligible surviving family members of coal miners whose deaths were due to Black Lung – a disease caused and exacerbated by long-term inhalation of coal and silica dust. These benefits are either paid for by coal mining companies or the Black Lung Disability Trust Fund, which was fully-funded by Senator Manchin’s Inflation Reduction Act. Currently, due to restrictions associated with the Black Lung Benefits Program, survivors must establish that Black Lung was a substantial contributing cause of death – a burden of proof that is often difficult to meet since autopsy reports may not specifically cite Black Lung, and instead reference related conditions.

Specifically, this legislation would:

  • Re-establish a rebuttable presumption that a miner’s death was due to Black Lung if they were disabled due to pneumoconiosis at the time of death;
  • Improve access to legal representation for miners and survivors of miners to ensure that individuals are not unable to secure benefits due to a lack of financial resources.

The legislation also:

  • Requests that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) provide a report to Congress on the financial impact of recouping interim Department of Labor payments in order to determine the financial impact of Black Lung benefits and interim payments on Black Lung beneficiaries and the government;
  • Requests that GAO look at other ways to improve the Black Lung benefits claims process for survivors of miners.

The full text of the bill is available here.

A timeline of Senator Manchin’s work on black lung issues is available here.