Editing Nuclear weapons testing (section)

==Compensation for victims==
{{see also|Environmental impact of war}}

Over 500 atmospheric nuclear weapons tests were conducted at various sites around the world from 1945 to 1980. As public awareness and concern mounted over the possible health hazards associated with exposure to the [[nuclear fallout]], various studies were done to assess the extent of the hazard. A [[Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]]/ [[National Cancer Institute]] study claims that nuclear fallout might have led to approximately 11,000 excess deaths, most caused by [[thyroid cancer]] linked to exposure to [[iodine-131]].<ref>{{cite book|url=http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=10621|title=Exposure of the American Population to Radioactive Fallout from Nuclear Weapons Tests: A Review of the CDC-NCI Draft Report on a Feasibility Study of the Health Consequences to the American Population from Nuclear Weapons Tests Conducted by the United States and Other Nations|first=National Research|last=Council|date=11 February 2003|doi=10.17226/10621|pmid=25057651|isbn=9780309087131}}</ref>

* '''United States''': Prior to March 2009, the US was the only nation to compensate nuclear test victims. Since the [[Radiation Exposure Compensation Act]] of 1990, more than $1.38&nbsp;billion in compensation has been approved. The money is going to people who took part in the tests, notably at the [[Nevada Test Site]], and to others exposed to the radiation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usdoj.gov/civil/omp/omi/Tre_SysClaimsToDateSum.pdf|title=Radiation Exposure Compensation System: Claims to Date Summary of Claims Received by 06/11/2009|website=Usdoj.gov}}</ref> As of 2017, the US government refused to pay for the medical care of troops who associate their health problems with the construction of [[Runit Dome]] in the Marshall Islands.<ref>{{cite web|title=Troops Who Cleaned Up Radioactive Islands Can't Get Medical Care |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/us/troops-radioactive-islands-medical-care.html |website=[[The New York Times]] |date=28 January 2017 }}</ref>
* '''France''': In March 2009, the French Government offered to compensate victims for the first time and legislation is being drafted which would allow payments to people who suffered health problems related to the tests.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hardach |first1=Sophie |last2=Shirbon |first2=Estelle |date=24 March 2009 |title=France to compensate victims of nuclear testing |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-nuclear/france-to-compensate-victims-of-nuclear-testing-idUKTRE52N4W720090324/ |work=[[Reuters]] |access-date=28 January 2025}}</ref> The payouts would be available to victims' descendants and would include Algerians, who were exposed to nuclear testing in the Sahara in 1960. Victims say the eligibility requirements for compensation are too narrow.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}
* '''United Kingdom''': There is no formal British government compensation program. Nearly 1,000 veterans of [[Christmas Island (Kiritimati)#Nuclear bomb tests|Christmas Island nuclear tests]] in the 1950s are engaged in legal action against the Ministry of Defense for negligence. They say they suffered health problems and were not warned of potential dangers before the experiments.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}
* '''Russia''': Decades later, Russia offered compensation to veterans who were part of the [[Totskoye nuclear exercise|1954 Totsk test]]. There was no compensation to civilians sickened by the Totsk test. Anti-nuclear groups say there has been no government compensation for other nuclear tests.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}
* '''China''': China has undertaken highly secretive atomic tests in remote deserts in a Central Asian border province. Anti-nuclear activists say there is no known government program for compensating victims.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}