The Department of Energy is proposing to pay $100,000 or ongoing expenses for those who became ill after working in the nuclear weapons industry - workers whom one Pennsylvania congressman called "the Cold War's forgotten soldiers."

At Hanford, the money would go only to those with chronic beryllium disease caused by breathing small particles of the metal.

The DOE proposal, sent to Congress Wednesday, also would include money for workers at Oak Ridge, Tenn., and Paducah, Ky., who believe working at DOE sites led to cancer or other illnesses.

Although Hanford workers are not covered in the legislation, except for problems linked to beryllium, a March report could lead to broader coverage at Hanford and at other DOE sites. The National Economic Council is studying whether other illnesses may have been caused by radioactive and toxic materials and should be included in the program.

The proposed legislation is the first time DOE would take care of workers who became ill as a result of working for DOE contractors at sites that produced nuclear materials for the Cold War.

"Our workers, who faithfully served this country during the Cold War, deserve fair and reasonable compensation if their work protecting our national security has made them ill," Energy Secretary Bill Richardson said at a news conference with Democratic members of Congress. "The Department of Energy is changing from an agency that opposed worker health claims to one that is actually trying to help resolve those claims."

The legislation would give past and current Hanford workers with chronic beryllium disease reimbursement for medical costs, disability benefits for lost wages and, if needed, job retraining. Those workers and the families of eligible deceased workers could instead opt for a one-time payment of $100,000.

However, Dr. Tim Takaro of the University of Washington's medical school cautioned that Hanford workers may want to consider carefully before signing up for the federal programs.

"I'm not so sure the state benefits aren't better," he said. "My experience is the federal compensation program can be laborious."

The benefits of some states' compensation programs are geared toward traumatic injuries, but Washington's worker compensation program offers those with chronic beryllium disease coverage for time loss, retraining, vocational rehabilitation and medical benefits.

So far, one current worker at Hanford is known to have chronic beryllium disease, and several other past and present workers have been diagnosed with beryllium sensitization, which can lead to the full-blown disease. That number is expected to increase as screening continues on current and former workers.

To date, DOE screening programs have identified 146 cases of chronic beryllium disease among workers at all its sites, with a new case being diagnosed every month in a current or former worker.

At Hanford, beryllium was used from 1952 to 1987, most often in a material developed to close the ends of uranium fuel rods.

Breathing in beryllium can result in scarring in the lungs in certain people with an allergylike reaction to the metal. Symptoms may include shortness of breath, coughing, tiredness or weight loss.

The disease may develop as quickly as a few months after a worker breathes in beryllium or as long as 15 years later.

"I strongly support additional diseases being added to the program," said Takaro, who's studying Hanford-related health problems among its former workers.

The Veterans Administration has agreed to compensate veterans who were exposed to radiation during tests of nuclear bombs and who developed cancer, he said. However, some Hanford workers were exposed to more radiation, he said.

Besides radiation exposure, exotic metals other than beryllium, solvents and other chemicals could have caused health problems at DOE sites. Takaro is concerned about asbestos exposure and noise-related hearing loss at Hanford.

Besides beryllium-related compensation, legislation sent to Congress on Tuesday would offer $100,000 to workers at DOE's uranium enrichment plant in Paducah who developed one of 15 kinds of cancer after unknowingly being exposed to plutonium.

The Oak Ridge, Tenn., program would give $100,000 to individual workers in a group of about 50 if studies due to be finished this year by independent doctors link those workers' illnesses to jobs at the nuclear site there.

Preliminary statements of the doctors indicate they believe symptoms are work-related. Since 1995, some workers have complained of memory loss, depression and high blood pressure they believe is linked to chemical or radiation exposure.

The proposed program, covering beryllium problems, Oak Ridge and Paducah, would cost an estimated $30 million to $40 million in its first year, said David Michaels, assistant secretary for DOE environmental safety and health.