Bloomberg news has an interesting report this morning on the number of U.S. government contractors killed thus far in Iraq. Until now, such numbers had been very difficult to come by, even through indirect means such as Labor Department or workers' comp filings. Companies kept them quiet both as a business intelligence matter and a liability matter. Now, thanks to Tony Capaccio at Bloomberg, we have some idea of just how risky this job is:

Companies so far this year have filed claims for 157 deaths and 516 serious injuries, based on U.S. Labor Department figures given to Bloomberg News yesterday. Almost 60 percent of those civilians who died worked for Halliburton Co. and Titan Corp. In 2003, contractors claimed 23 deaths and 132 serious injuries.

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Halliburton, the biggest U.S. contractor in Iraq, and Titan, the top provider of Army translators, have filed the most claims for employees killed or wounded in Iraq. Halliburton units through yesterday have filed 747 of 1,346 Iraqi-related claims, including 16 deaths, while Titan has filed 192 claims, including 77 deaths. A total of 78 companies filed insurance claims.

The 1941 Defense Base Act requires insurance coverage for workers in combat zones hired under U.S. contracts. Every U.S. company bidding on government work overseas in places such as Iraq, Kuwait, or Bosnia and Herzegovina must buy insurance for its U.S. and foreign workers, including Iraqi personnel, from private U.S. carriers.

About 60,000 U.S. civilians are working in Iraq alongside 138,000 U.S. troops. Another 85,000 Iraqis employed on U.S. projects are also eligible for benefits under the Base Act.

"Everyone knows Iraq is dangerous — something that the most recent killings tragically reminded us — but the DBA figures are important in that they provide the raw numbers policymakers and analysts need in an area of public policy that has a surprising lack of public information," [Brookings Institution expert Peter] Singer said.

Analysis: When one thinks about U.S. forces in Iraq, there is a temptation to simply think about our uniformed soldiers, because the Pentagon does a decent job of publicizing their numbers and their casualties. However, that's a mistake, because the U.S. has legions of diplomats, government civilian employees, contractors, and others in the war zone too. When we think of our presence in Iraq, we ought to look at the complete picture, and evaluate how each piece fits into the puzzle. We now have a much better idea of how large the contractor piece is, thanks to this article. I look forward to reading more about this subject in the future.