May 27, 2005

THANKS, GANG:

Senate panel OKs asbestos trust fund bill (JESSE J. HOLLAND, 5/26/05, Associated Press)

Manufacturers and insurance companies would be shielded from multimillion-dollar lawsuits from people with asbestos-related diseases in exchange for funding a $140 billion trust fund under legislation that has cleared its first hurdle.

Supporters claim a fund like the one the Senate Judiciary Committee approved Thursday is the only way to stop large asbestos lawsuits that have bankrupted such companies as Owens Corning Fiberglas and W.R Grace, and left sick people with no way to pay their medical bills.

The trust fund would compensate people sickened by exposure to asbestos, a fibrous mineral commonly used in construction until the mid-1970s. Asbestos has tiny fibers that can cause cancer and other ailments when inhaled. Millions of people have been exposed, and the diseases often take decades to develop.

Bill supporters say a trust fund would speed money to those suffering from asbestos-related illnesses and it would protect companies from the prospect of being sued out of existence.

The Rand Institute for Civil Justice said in a 2003 study that more than 60 companies have sought bankruptcy protection because of more than 600,000 asbestos claims now in courts. That number is expected to grow in the future.

A legislative compromise has proved elusive.


One of the realities for Republicans of being the party of business--their money men wanted bills like this more than a filibuster fight.

Posted by Orrin Judd at May 27, 2005 5:25 PM
Comments

Finally!

Posted by: Sandy P. at May 27, 2005 7:47 PM

Another reality is that Bush managed to get bankruptcy reform and asbestos reform while tackling Social Security reform and writing the future of the Middle East. Pretty good multi-tasking for a moron. I'm beginning to believe the Karl Rove conspiracy theories that the White House distracts the attention of the press with issues like avoiding the 'nucular option' while major reform of such as asbestos litigation slips right under the radar.

Posted by: Fred Jacobsen (San Fran) at May 27, 2005 10:00 PM

I live in the US and have for more than 40 years, including a childhood spent in a major industrial city. I am sure I breathed in a few asbestos fibers in my lifetime (sometimes I can even feel them, tickling my lungs). Where can I sue?

[sarcasm off]

Each of us has radioactive atoms from the fuel at Chernobyl in our bodies, somewhere.

This problem should have been settled 20 years ago, with only actual injured parties able to collect. The real issue is that the victim class was broadened to include anyone exposed, not just those who had mesothelioma or asbestiosis. I went to an elementary school that was probably 75 years old. Let's assume asbestos was there. I have visited enough industrial sites and crawled through enough rooms with insulated pipe and cable to know that asbestos was there. Did I see any flaking? No. Am I worried? No.

Why can't or why didn't Congress just restrict standing?

Posted by: jim hamlen at May 28, 2005 12:30 AM
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