How to file for Black Lung benefits?
The first step in applying for Black Lung benefits is to complete an application form. You will be asked to provide important basic information about yourself and your family. The form is called the “Miner’s Claim for Benefits under the Black Lung Act” (Form CM-911). You will also complete an “Employment History” (Supplemental Form CM-911a). This form requests information about your work as a miner, the number of years you worked, the names of the coal companies that employed you, and your work outside the coal mining industry. This information is needed to determine whether you were a coal miner and whether a specific coal mining company will pay your benefits. A representative from the U.S. Department of Labor (Division of Coal Mine Workers’ Compensation) or the Social Security Administration can assist you in completing the application forms.
After the DCMWC begins to process your benefits application, you will be contacted to schedule a complete pulmonary evaluation. A “pulmonary evaluation” is a medical examination to determine whether you are totally disabled by black lung disease. The Department of Labor (DOL) is required by law to offer you a free examination to prove that you may be entitled to black lung benefits. This examination includes:
- a physical examination by a physician.
- a chest X-ray.
- a pulmonary function test and an arterial blood gas test (unless medically contraindicated) measure your ability to breathe.
After the DCMWC receives the results of your pulmonary examination, the results are reviewed, and a determination will be made as to the status of your claim. If you refuse to be examined, your claim may be denied without further consideration of your entitlement to benefits.
Once all of the information has been reviewed, it will be decided whether your claim must be approved or denied, and a “Proposed Decision and Order” will be issued. This written decision will explain the reasons for approving or denying your claim. You (and the coal company, if one is liable for your claim) should be informed of the options for challenging the decision and the time limits for further action. These options include asking the Department to reconsider its decision or requesting a hearing before an administrative law judge.