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BP to Transfer Claims to Independent Facility

   VOA News 18 August 2010
   A  ribbon  of oil lines marsh grass at low tide in a cove in Barataria
   Bay on the coast of Louisiana, 31 Jul 2010

Photo: AP

   A  ribbon  of oil lines marsh grass at low tide in a cove in Barataria
   Bay on the coast of Louisiana, 31 Jul 2010

   Oil  company [1]BP says it is preparing to transfer responsibility for
   damage claims from the Gulf oil spill to an independent facility.
   Wednesday  is  the last day BP will accept claims from individuals and
   businesses.  After that, the British-based oil giant will direct those
   affected  by the spill to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility, which starts
   work Monday.
   BP  has  established  a $20 billion fund for compensation payments and
   says  it  has  already paid $368 million to people and businesses that
   suffered in the disaster.
   The  company  says  it  will continue to handle claims from government
   entities and take calls about suspected fraud.
   The BP disaster, the worst offshore oil spill in history, has severely
   impacted the fishing and tourism industries of the Gulf Coast.
   Earlier  this  week,  scientists with the [2]Natural Resources Defense
   Council  said  the  oil  spill  poses wide-ranging threats to people's
   health and seafood safety.
   Attorney  Kenneth  Feinberg, who handled the government's compensation
   fund  after  the  2001  terrorist attacks, is charged with leading the
   Gulf Coast Claims Facility and BP's $20 billion relief fund.
   The  American  Psychiatric  Association  has called on Feinberg to pay
   mental  health  claims  like  all other health claims. The APA says it
   objects  to  Feinberg's  recent  testimony  that he is unlikely to use
   money  from  BP's  compensation  fund  to settle claims where the main
   complaint  involves  mental health issues. The association says mental
   illnesses  from  the  oil  spill  are  "real"  and include depression,
   post-traumatic  stress disorder, substance abuse disorder and suicidal
   thoughts.
   On  Monday,  a  team of scientists at the University of Georgia said a
   review of government data showed almost 80 percent of the oil from the
   BP  leak remains in the Gulf -- much higher than government estimates,
   which says that only about a quarter of the oil is still in the water.
   Oil  first  began  gushing  into  the Gulf of Mexico after an April 20
   explosion  on  a  rig  leased  by  BP, which ruptured the oil well and
   killed  11  workers.   BP  capped  the  well in mid-July and has been
   engaged in a massive clean-up effort.

References

   1. http://www.bp.com/bodycopyarticle.do?categoryId=1&contentId=7052055
   2. http://www.nrdc.org/

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