Pneumoconiosis, commonly known as "black lung," is a progressive and irreversible pulmonary condition that can afflict those regularly exposed to coal dust. Mullins Coal Co. v. Dir., OWCP, 484 U.S. 135, 138, 108 S.Ct. 427, 98 L.Ed.2d 450 (1987). In recognition of the effects of this disease, Congress adopted the BLBA to require private coal companies to compensate miners and their families. Id. at 138-39, 108 S.Ct. 427. The BLBA permits coal workers or their surviving dependents to apply for benefits by filing a claim with the District Director of the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Workers' Compensation Programs ("Director"). 20 C.F.R. §§ 725.301-725.423. In order to award benefits, the Director must find that the coal worker has pneumoconiosis arising out of his or her coal mine employment, is totally disabled, and the pneumoconiosis substantially contributed to the worker's disability. Id. § 725.202(d). Fox ex rel. Fox v. Elk Run Coal Co., Inc., 739 F. 3d 131 (4th Cir. 2014).
The BLBA provides lifetime disability benefits to coal miners who develop pneumoconiosis as a result of prolonged exposure to coal dust from working in coal mines. 30 U.S.C. §§ 901-944 (2013). The statute also provides survivors' benefits to the dependents of coal miners who received benefits under the BLBA during their lifetime upon the miner's death. Id. Consolidation Coal Company v. Maynes, 739 F. 3d 323 (6th Cir. 2014).
[I]n 1981 Congress revisited the law, revising § 932(l) and imposing a new causation burden on surviving dependents. Most recently, the Black Lung Benefits Act was amended by the Affordable Care Act, which eliminated the relevant causation requirement by reinstating 30 U.S.C. § 932(l) as it had existed before the 1981 amendments. [A] survivor who was denied benefits under the pre-ACA statutory scheme can submit a subsequent claim for consideration under the amended version of the statute. Jim Walter Resources v. Director, OWCP, 766 F. 3d 1333 (11th Cir. 2014).
The BLBA created a presumption that a miner is disabled due to pneumoconiosis when he or she has worked for 15 years in underground coal mines or substantially similar conditions and is totally disabled from a respiratory or pulmonary condition (the "15-year presumption"). In other words, a miner who proves 15 years of coal mine work and total disability is entitled to a presumption that the remaining elements of his claim are established. This presumption expired in 1982. 30 U.S.C. § 921(c)(4) (2006). Antelope Coal Company/Rio Tinto Energy v. Goodin, 743 F. 3d 1331 (10th Cir. 2014).
In 2010, Congress adopted the Byrd Amendments to the BLBA as part of the Affordable Care Act, Pub.L. No. 111-148, § 1556, 124 Stat. 119, 260 (2010). The amendments reinstated the 15-year presumption for claims filed after January 1, 2005. See 30 U.S.C. § 921(c)(4) (2012). Antelope Coal Company, ibid.
Section 921 provides that the Secretary of Labor can rebut the 15-year presumption only by proving (1) the claimant does not have pneumoconiosis, or (2) the claimant's impairment "did not arise out of, or in connection with, employment in a coal mine." Id. § 921(c)(4). In 1976, the Supreme Court ruled the rebuttal limitations apply only to the Secretary and do not apply to coal mine operators. Usery v. Turner Elkhorn Mining Co., 428 U.S. 1, 34-37, 96 S.Ct. 2882, 49 L.Ed.2d 752 (1976). Antelope Coal Company, ibid.
THIS CASEBOOK contains a selection of 32 U. S. Court of Appeals decisions that analyze and interpret provisions of the Black Lung Benefits Act. The selection of decisions spans from 2011 to the date of publication.