Section 402(f) of the Act authorizes the Secretary of Labor to establish criteria for determining total disability or death due to pneumoconiosis to be applied in the processing and adjudication of claims filed under Part C of the Act. Section 402(f) further authorizes the Secretary of Labor, in consultation with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, to establish criteria for all appropriate medical tests administered in connection with a claim for benefits. Section 413(b) of the Act authorizes the Secretary of Labor to establish criteria for the techniques used to take chest roentgenograms (x-rays) in connection with a claim for benefits under the Act.

(a) With the exception of the second sentence of § 718.204(a), this part is applicable to the adjudication of all claims filed on or after June 30, 1982 under Part C of the Act. It provides standards for establishing entitlement to benefits under the Act and describes the criteria for the development of medical evidence used in establishing such entitlement. The second sentence of § 718.204(a) is applicable to the adjudication of all claims filed after January 19, 2001.

(b) Publication of certain provisions or parts of certain provisions that apply only to claims filed prior to June 30, 1982, or to claims subject to Section 435 of the Act, has been discontinued because those provisions affect an increasingly smaller number of claims. The version of Part 718 set forth in 20 CFR, parts 500 to end, edition revised as of April 1, 2010, applies to the adjudication of all claims filed prior to June 30, 1982, as appropriate.

(c) The provisions of this part must, to the extent appropriate, be construed together in the adjudication of claims.

(a) This part sets forth the standards to be applied in determining whether a coal miner is or was totally disabled due to pneumoconiosis or died due to pneumoconiosis. It also specifies the procedures and requirements to be followed in conducting medical examinations and in administering various tests relevant to such determinations.

(b) This part is designed to interpret the presumptions contained in section 411(c) of the Act, evidentiary standards and criteria contained in section 413(b) of the Act and definitional requirements and standards contained in section 402(f) of the Act within a coherent framework for the adjudication of claims. It is intended that these enumerated provisions of the Act be construed as provided in this part.

Except as is otherwise provided by this part, the definitions and usages of terms contained in § 725.101 of subpart A of part 725 of this title shall be applicable to this part.

(a) The materials listed in paragraphs (b) through (f) of this section are incorporated by reference in this part. The Director of the Federal Register has approved these incorporations by reference under 5 U.S.C. 522(a) and 1 CFR part 51. To enforce any edition other than that specified in these regulations, OWCP must publish notice of change in the Federal Register. All approved material is available from the sources listed below. You may inspect a copy of the approved material at the Division of Coal Mine Workers' Compensation, OWCP, U.S. Department of Labor, Washington, DC. To arrange for an inspection at OWCP, call 202-693-0046. These materials are also available for inspection at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030 or go to http://www.archives.gov/federalregister/codeoffederalregulations/ibrlocations.html.

(b) American Association of Physicists in Medicine, Order Department, Medical Physics Publishing, 4513 Vernon Blvd., Madison, WI 53705, http://www.aapm.org/pubs/reports:

(1) AAPM On-Line Report No. 03, Assessment of Display Performance for Medical Imaging Systems, April 2005, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(2) AAPM Report No. 93, Acceptance Testing and Quality Control of Photostimulable Storage Phosphor Imaging Systems, October 2006, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(c) American College of Radiology, 1891 Preston White Dr., Reston, VA 20191, http://www.acr.org/∼/media/ACR/Documents/PGTS/guidelines/Reference_Levels.pdf:

(1) ACR Practice Guideline for Diagnostic Reference Levels in Medical X-Ray Imaging, Revised 2008 (Resolution 3), IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(2) [Reserved]

(d) International Labour Office, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland, http://www.ilo.org/publns: (1) Occupational Safety and Health Series No. 22, Guidelines for the Use of the ILO International Classification of Radiographs of Pneumoconioses, Revised edition 2011, IBR approved for § 718.102(d) and Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(2) Occupational Safety and Health Series No. 22 (Rev. 2000), Guidelines for the Use of the ILO International Classification of Radiographs of Pneumoconioses, Revised edition 2000, IBR approved for § 718.102(d).

(3) Occupational Safety and Health Series No. 22 (Rev. 80), Guidelines for the Use of ILO International Classification of Radiographs of Pneumoconioses, Revised edition 1980, IBR approved for § 718.102(d).

(e) National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, NCRP Publications, 7910 Woodmont Avenue, Suite 400, Bethesda, MD 20814-3095, Telephone (800) 229-2652, http://www.ncrppublications.org:

(1) NCRP Report No. 102, Medical X-Ray, Electron Beam, and Gamma-Ray Protection for Energies Up to 50 MeV (Equipment Design, Performance, and Use), issued June 30, 1989, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (b).

(2) NCRP Report No. 105, Radiation Protection for Medical and Allied Health Personnel, issued October 30, 1989, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (b).

(3) NCRP Report No. 147, Structural Shielding Design for Medical X-Ray Imaging Facilities, revised March 18, 2005, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (b).

(f) National Electrical Manufacturers Association, 1300 N. 17th Street, Rosslyn, VA 22209, http://medical.nema.org:

(1) DICOM Standard PS 3.3-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 3: Information Object Definitions, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(2) DICOM Standard PS 3.4-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 4: Service Class Specifications, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(3) DICOM Standard PS 3.10-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 10: Media Storage and File Format for Media Interchange, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(4) DICOM Standard PS 3.11-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 11: Media Storage Application Profiles, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(5) DICOM Standard PS 3.12-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 12: Media Formats and Physical Media for Media Interchange, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(6) DICOM Standard PS 3.14-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 14: Grayscale Standard Display Function, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).

(7) DICOM Standard PS 3.16-2011, Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) standard, Part 16: Content Mapping Resource, copyright 2011, IBR approved for Appendix A to part 718, paragraph (d).