instances, counterproductive in explaining the nature cf radiation and the effects cf the residual radioactive contamination on human Looe nele THOSE GOLIAS AGve Ld a ancifectioe even theush «rirtin in Marshallese an? English and clearly aimed at a lay audience. Most Marshallese simply cannot understand the text. Mcreover, the pre-~ antation of the results in terms of the average risk of dying of neer -- perhars presented this way in an effort to simplify the sue -- tends to mask the variability of the data and its unarttainties, making the results misleading. WW fy Ci BO 1 < “ith reaqard to the second area, the US medical surveillance program conducted by Brookhaven National Laboratory under DOE contract is a narrowly focused research effort to identify the late effects ios t cr radiation in the most heavily exposed Marshallese people. The treatment by the US of radiation induced health effects and compencation for these effects have been largely but not totally limited a thoe effects which have been clearly identified by the surveillance rrcgram as being radiation induced, mainly, thyroid abnormalities among those most heavily exposed to the fallout from the Bravo test. Health effects that have not been statistically linked to radiation tn the Marshallese population under study are generally not treated -- exceptions have been made but generally these have not been in accord with Brookhaven's contract with DOE -- and the victims are not compensated. In effect, the burden of proof lies not with the US to demonstrate the disease is not .-it with the victim to demonstrate that it was. radiation incuced, T..e US Government -- and perhaps the United Nations -- should con- sider whether the medical surveillance program should be so narrowly “>fined; whether the people in the surveillance program who have Leen categorized as "unexposed controls" should be so categorized; end whether the level of compensation and the people who qualify for 22 are appropriately defined. Nearly everyone with whom we spoke felt that the Marshall Islands has serious, unique health problems and inadequate care (the lack of health care facilities is obvious even to the casual observer); that a:l of the people should be given comprehensive health care regardless of whether they have been categorized as "exposed" or “unex- posed"; that the new Marshall Islands Government does not have adequate capacity to do this; and that it is the responsibility of the US government not just to give funding, but to ensure by all reasonable means that such care is made available. Moreover, a Marshalls government-endorsed independent medical survey miqht be helpful in moving more decisively in this direction. There is widespread distrust by Marshallese of US scientists involved in radiation monitoring and health surveillance programs. imong the Marshallese who are participants in the Brookhaven surveillance program some have even said, “the Marshallese are being used as 'quinea pigs', “and that the fallout from the 1954 Bravo ‘ost was not an accident."Unfortunately the scientists working today are forced to carry em@ policy accumulated over attributed to the DOE's ation. Some charge that the baggage of mistakes and changes in the past 37 years. Weheard ulterior motives educations efforts reqarding residual radiscientists are giving conflicting messages. -O3-