Hundreds of people who qualified for a share of the hundreds of millions of dollars of Flint water settlement funds may soon be cut out.
More than a decade ago, the city of Flint’s drinking water source was switched to the Flint River. But the river water was not properly treated. The result was contaminants were released from aging pipes, including lead.
The state of Michigan, city of Flint and several businesses agreed to pay into a more than $600 million fund to settle legal claims.
More than 25,000 thousand individuals were approved to receive a share of the settlement. Nearly 80% of the settlement funds are to be distributed to individuals who were minors at the time of their exposure to Flint water. A dozen years since the beginning of the water crisis, many of those children are now adults.
But the payment process has been hampered because some claims did not include correct Social Security numbers or required signatures.
In a report filed with the federal court last week, Special Master Deborah Greenspan wrote that the claims administrator has worked with claimants to resolve paperwork issues, but that time is at an end.
“As of the date of this Report, there are approximately 990 claims submitted for claimants who have now reached the age of 18 that have not responded to notices sent over a year ago requesting the necessary signatures, and approximately 1,571 claimants who have received notices more recently but have not yet provided the information,” wrote Greenspan.
Greenspan said there are still approximately 250 claimants with approved injury claims who have not provided a valid Social Security number, and approximately 1,000 claimants who have not accessed their settlement payments even though an administrator has advanced those payments to a claims portal.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy authorized final notices be sent to those with unresolved paperwork issues advising them that unless the missing information is provided in 30 days their claim will be denied and closed.
The payments vary depending on the settlement category a claimant qualifies for, ranging from $400 to $25,000.
