Howard Berkes

After NPR reported Bob Ebeling's story on the anniversary of the Challenger explosion, hundreds of people responded. Ebeling, now 89, says those letters "helped bring my worrisome mind to ease."

Bob Ebeling, an anonymous source for NPR's 1986 report on the disaster, tells NPR that despite warning NASA of troubles before the launch, he believes God "shouldn't have picked me for that job."

Companies that opt out of state workers' comp laws say the Employee Retirement Income Security Act will ensure that injured workers get justice. An NPR investigation found that may not be true.

Updated 7:30 p.m. ET with Kline comment

Ten ranking Democrats on key Senate and House committees are urging the Labor Department to respond to a "pattern of detrimental changes in state workers' compensation laws" that have reduced protections and benefits for injured workers over the past decade.

In a

As states consider allowing employers to completely opt out of workers' compensation plans, NPR and ProPublica take a look at how the concept has worked in Texas.

State laws in both Oklahoma and Texas allow employers to develop their own workplace injury plans that generally cover fewer injuries, cut off benefits payments sooner and control access to doctors.

Dr. Donald L. Rasmussen worked on behalf of coal miners in Appalachia and helped create a national movement against black lung disease.

In 1998, the year that Sepp Blatter took the helm at FIFA, the world soccer governing body, the International Olympic Committee became ensnared in its worst ethics crisis ever. As with FIFA, there were allegations of bribery, influence-peddling and corruption among IOC members and the shadowy "agents" who helped cities ...

The Labor Department's investigation follows an NPR/Mine Safety and Health News series about the failure of federal regulators to collect millions in safety penalties at the nation's mines.

Billionaire Jim Justice is said to be West Virginia's richest man. Now he wants to be the state's top elected official.

Justice announced his Democratic bid for governor Monday in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., which is home to his best-known asset — the posh and historic Greenbrier Resort.

"You need ...

Democratic lawmakers in Illinois sought to turn back proposed cutbacks in workers' compensation benefits with a rare eight-hour hearing Tuesday before the entire Illinois House.

House Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan convened the hearing in response to workers' compensation changes proposed by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner.

The hearing featured the findings ...

A California Senate committee has approved a bill that directly addresses a problem reported in the ProPublica/NPR investigation of state changes in workers' compensation benefits.

The measure sponsored by the California Medical Association (CMA) would prohibit insurance companies from using the state's 2012 workers' compensation reforms to reopen ...

The tattoos on Dennis Whedbee's left arm describe what he lost when the North Dakota oil rig where he was working blew out in 2012. There's an image of a severed hand spurting blood, framed by the word "LOST" in block letters and the date: "9-23-12."

The message underscores Whedbee's ...

Federal lawmakers have revived a mine safety reform bill that addresses a regulatory failure detailed in a joint investigation by NPR and Mine Safety and Health News.

The Robert C. Byrd Mine Safety Protection Act includes a provision that directly addresses the Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) failure ...

In 10 states, injured workers are finding it more difficult to get or keep medical treatment their doctors prescribe because of reforms to workers' comp laws.

California's labor department says it will conduct an audit of how Travelers Insurance handled the case of paralyzed worker Joel Ramirez, who was left to fend for himself for months after the company withdrew his 24-hour home health care.

Ramirez was featured in a ProPublica/NPR investigation of state ...

Six weeks before a landmark mine disaster trial, federal prosecutors in West Virginia have added a new allegation to the criminal conspiracy charges lodged against former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship.

A superseding indictment filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Beckley, W. Va., accuses Blankenship of ...

Injured workers who are dependent on workers' compensation have faced eroding benefits. We go to Alabama and Georgia, where the value of an amputated arm is $700,000 more just across the state line.

A federal appeals court has vacated a sweeping gag order in the criminal case involving former Massey Energy CEO Don Blankenship and the 2010 Upper Big Branch coal mine disaster.

More than two dozen news organizations, including The Charleston Gazette and NPR, filed appeals after U.S. District Judge ...

Changes to workers' compensation laws mean families and government bear more of the costs that result from injuries on the job.