“NAAV Data Center”
2310 Apollo Way,
Mesquite,
Texas 75150-5329
FAX_ 214/216-1838

March 9, 1995

J.C. Johnson,
Ph.D., CHP
National Academy of Sciences
Institute of Medicine, Medical Follow-Up Agency
2101 Constitution Avenue
Washington, D.C. 20418

Dear Dr. Johnson,

In reply to your letter of March 7, 1995, requesting registration criteria utilized to select Atomic Veterans to be placed on the NAAV Registry, the following is submitted for your information.

Since the formation of NAAV in 1978, various personnel have attempted to compile data an the medical problems faced by veterans who participated during the period of “Atmosphere Testing”. Additionally, those veterans who were POW's and those veterans who were occupation troops near Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been included with the test personnel. Together these veterans have come to be known as “Atomic Veterans”.

During my tenure as the National Commander and NAAV Board Chairman from 1986 through 1989, I discovered records and files of various Medical Surveys which had been conducted by NAAV. in 1992, we started collecting these survey forms in one file location, cataloging them by Test Series, and entering the data from these survey forms into a computer data base (FileMaker II and then FileMaker Pro) where the various categories of information are sortable into desired and usable data. Our present Medical Survey Questionnaire was developed at that time. Each new member since mid 1992 has been requested to complete a survey form for our records. Presently, I receive an average about 10 of these survey forms each week.

The following sources of information are utilized to compile information on each veteran listed in the NAAV Medical Survey Data Registry:

a.

A NAAV Medical Survey Questionnaire completed by the veteran or his widow. Specifically the years 1980, 1983, 1985-1986, 1992-1995. Many questionnaires are accompanied by copies of orders, DD-214 forms, discharge papers, doctors and hospital reports, VA documents, and DNA correspondence and/or registry forms.

b.

Correspondence files containing letters of inquires from veterans, their widows or children along with discharge documents, copies of orders, media articles, Guinea Pig Certificates, Letters of Commendation, VA documents and claim forms, etc.

c.

Information furnished by widows, ie, Death Certificates, DD-214 Forms, discharge papers, newspaper articles, VA documents and claim forms, etc.

All of this information is being sorted, cataloged, and entered into the NAAV computer data base to provide NAAV management with facts and figures usable in our efforts to “Obtain Simple Justice”.

In addition to Test Personnel, we are collecting Medical Survey information on other classes of exposed veterans. What could be termed the second generation Atomic Veteran. Personnel involved in Broken Arrow incidents, nuclear submarine crewmen, nuclear weapons handlers and custodians, etc. I have about 150 of this category so far.

We don't usually hear from a veteran until he connects in his mind that his health problems might be related to his exposure. Also widows discover who we are and contact us concerning their husbands involvement in nuclear testing. Since we operate on members dues and member donations only, we have little money to advertise the plight of atomic veterans and their families and even less to utilize on a project such as this registry. This registry is my labor of love for the last three years with a little help from my friends. If any of you fat cats have any grant money laying around, I could put it to good use for stationary supplies, postage, data entry, and phone bills.

The data furnished you recently is but a snap shot of our registry. By the end of this year we hope to have available on the NAAV Registry most of the health survey information collected by NAAV on Atomic Veterans over the past 18 years. At that point we will add Correspondence file and data received from Widows to the registry.

Unfortunately, much information has been lost because of veteran deaths and by a government who covered up individual's stupidity because they put security before compassion, fear of lawsuits above individual suffering, and official's pride and ego over truth.

I am personally very pleased that the data transfer was successful. I regret that not all of the information on Crossroad veterans is completed as I still have to enter information on personnel from the Radiological Safety Section and the Ammunition Disposal Teams during Operation Crossroads. Perhaps you will accept and update sometime in the future.

I hope that some time in the future I might be able to study your report and conclusions. Please feel free to call on me for any assistance I might be able to furnish the Crossroads study or the Five Tests study.

I remain,

Sincerely,

Boley H. Caldwell III
LTC(Ret)
U.S. Army