New Bill Proposed to Support Mesothelioma Victims in Britain

In a sincere attempt to help mesothelioma victims, it was announced by the British Government that a new bill has been proposed that will help mesothelioma patients to avail benefits offered by the state.

The new legislation called the ‘Child Maintenance Bill’ is on its way to become a law in 2008. According to Legal and Medical Online, this will entitle mesothelioma patients with upfront financial support who were unable to secure it in the past. This bill is indented to help all those people who were ‘exposed to asbestos from a relative, exposed to asbestos environmentally, self-employed and those who can’t trace their exposure to asbestos.’

Also, all those people who were refused help and medical insurance on account of mesothelioma before will now be financially helped and looked after with the passage of this bill.

This legislation came about as an answer to the rising concerns about unfair compensation to mesothelioma patients under the current law. This law stated that only those people who contracted this deadly cancer from on-job exposure to asbestos were eligible to receive mesothelioma claim from the state. The department of Work and Pensions (DWP) had raised questions over this problem and their consultation on “Improving Mesothelioma Claims Handling” prompted government to take action and propose this bill to help mesothelioma victims.

According to The Secretary Of State for Work and Pension, John Hutton, MP, now, no one will have to worry about themselves or their families and wait for years before they can get compensation money as most of the mesothelioma victims have to wait decades before they are given any financial help.

Hutton adds that the government is trying to make sure that all mesothelioma patients receive adequate compensation regardless of their employment history and other related issues. This will ensure that all the mesothelioma victims are treated equally and they get a second chance to their lives.

Public demanding Answers from Minnesota Health Department for Negligence

The Minnesota department of health is facing serious charges on account of withholding mesothelioma information from the people of northern Minnesota. The land of northern Minnesota comprises of Iron Range that is full of natural deposits like iron ore and taconite. On one hand where these mineral have been a source of prosperity and brought numerous job opportunities to the land, on the other hand, the dust released from these minerals has been accredited for bringing mesothelioma in the area. Mesothelioma, a rare and extremely deadly form of cancer is caused by asbestos, a deadly carcinogen if it is inhaled or breathed in.

Between 1988 and 1996, 17 miners died from what later came to be known as asbestos related cancer in 2003. In March 2006 it was found that the exact number of miners who worked at Iron Range was more than 17, it was actually 52 and the real cause of these deaths was the mine dust that was chemically identical to asbestos as reported by the Star Tribune.

However, this report was not made public and more than 4,000 men and women workers were not told abut the dangerous health consequences they were facing by working in taconite industry. It is not known that why the state Health Department did not notify the residents of the area about mesothelioma threat and maintained silence over the increasing number of deaths.

According to Star Tribune, the Health Department was planning to release drafts of this news only if the findings of this report leaked by any chance. The internal documents of Health Department uncovered by the Star Tribute state Health Commissioner Dianne Mandernach’s briefings that, “release of the findings is likely to generate demands that the government do more to protect workers.”

Additionally, it has been learned that the health department deliberately excluded two university researchers from the study for the fear that they might disclose the information. This was deliberate cruelty and ruthlessness of the Health Department as it is the duty of the government to look after the health interests of its people.

Commissioner Mandernach has claimed that since the department learned about the additional deaths caused by mesothelioma, it has been carrying out further research to “…make sure we had a scientific basis and protocol put together.” However, this claim has been rejected on the basis of being doubtful and a poor excuse for withholding such important information regarding the safety of miners.

The people of Iron Range are very upset and demand an answer from the Health Department for keeping this information to themselves and endangering precious lives to mesothelioma. This kept the outside help from reaching the state and helping people and researchers to fight this deadly cancer. The department has been strongly accused of being negligent in carrying out its duty.

Due to lack of funds and proper equipment, the state is not fully equipped to carry out the comprehensive study that the department claims to be working on. This has caused a wave of resentment and anger among people and they are demanding answers from the department for their uncaring and negligent attitude.

Proposal to Ban Asbestos in the US forwarded by Senate Environment and Public Works Committee

A meeting was held by The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee (EPW) in which they reviewed their plan to propose asbestos ban in the US. Senator Patty Murray (D Wash) is going to handle the asbestos ban legislation. This ban aims to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act and in turn prohibit the US from importing, manufacturing, processing and distributing asbestos in any form or in any product.

In a statement issued by Senator Murray’s office, it has been mentioned that US is currently importing more than $100 millions worth asbestos containing products yearly. These products include brake pads, cement pipes and floor tiles that are likely to harm people installing and working with them.

Inhalation of asbestos is known to cause a very deadly cancer called mesothelioma. Asbestos inhalation can also cause other diseases and illnesses that include lung scarring and asbestosis among others.

It has been learned that the EPW will hear testimonies from numerous health professionals about the health complications caused by asbestos and how these diseases can be prevented. Senator Murray plans to address the panel regarding the usage of asbestos in the US and the need to ban this toxic.

Senator Murray’s bills also calls for public awareness campaigns and launching health care programs regarding the deadly effects of mesothelioma on human health. He has also demanded a federal survey of asbestos related diseases and a national network of treatment centers for mesothelioma patients and asbestos affected patients.

Mesothelioma Incidents increasing in Younger People

It has been announced by the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) that a large number of people now being diagnosed with mesothelioma are younger as compared to mesothelioma patients a few decades ago. The case reports based on the facts of past 3 years revealed that 51 is the new median age for mesothelioma and most of the patients who are being diagnosed with mesothelioma are women. Evidence also suggests a changing profile of patients who are being diagnosed with mesothelioma. Most of these patients are in their early 40’s and nearly 40% of these people never came in contact with asbestos. The only cause of mesothelioma in their case was environmental exposure.

The Columbia University Mesothelioma Center in New York also supports these findings. Dr. Robert N. Taub, Milstein, Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director of the Columbia University Mesothelioma Center in New York City reports that the average age of peritoneal mesothelioma patient is now 51.7 and less than 50% patients had asbestos exposure that was immediately recognized by medical personnel.

It has been observed that like many other occupational and environmental diseases, asbestos diseases, especially mesothelioma go unattended. It is important to bring such diseases to the notice of concerned authorities so that proper preventive measures can be taken to control their spread. These thoughts were expressed by Richard Lemen, PhD, MSPH, Assistant Surgeon General, USPHS (Ret.) and ADAO Science Advisory Board Co-Chair. He further added that only when such cases are brought forward, anything would be possible regarding their prevention and they would be controlled.

According to Linda Reinstein, Executive Director and Cofounder of the ADAO, mesothelioma is now being contracted by young fathers and mothers who are in their late 20’s and 30’s. These people are now coming forward and contacting ADAO as they are realizing the grave importance of this disease. She further adds that ADAO is helping the patients with this malignant disease and will continue to do so until mesothelioma is wiped off from the US.

It has been specifically mentioned that the patient profile of 1990 no longer applies to the patients of this decade. As compared to the median age that was 70 in 1986; the median age is now 51.7 as reported by the Center for Disease Control. In 1999, more than one third of mesothelioma deaths occurred only in the states of California, Florida, Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio.

According to ADAO officials, the cases of mesothelioma and other asbestos diseases are growing out of control. Studies indicate that during the next decades 100,000 people of the US will be victims of mesothelioma and asbestos diseases. This is an alarming situation that needs to be addressed very seriously as millions of lives are at stake here.