Energy Workers Health Improvement and Compensation Fund Act

Energy Workers Health Improvement and Compensation Fund Act would create a new Energy Workers Health Compensation Fund inside the U.S. Treasury. The fund is financed by oil companies and is used to reimburse eligible oil and gas workers and their families for certain medical expenses related to asthma, heat-related illness, and other respiratory or cardiovascular diseases linked to methane emissions, smog, particulate matter, and volatile organic compounds. Funding comes from annual deposits by oil companies calculated as the aggregate compensation paid to their 10 highest-paid employees in the prior year, with a potential 10% penalty if underpayments are detected, and optional additional contributions. The act also establishes a Health Outcomes Commission to study and improve health outcomes for oil and gas workers, and requires annual reporting from the Secretary of Labor to the Commission about fund deposits and compensation paid. Definitions set criteria for who qualifies as an eligible worker, family member, and which companies are covered. In short, the bill creates a federally funded, industry-based medical expense relief program for selected oil and gas workers and their families, financed by a defined formula tied to executives’ compensation, plus a governance mechanism to study health outcomes and provide recommendations to federal agencies.