Victims of Asbestos Disease Deserve Just Compensation

The loud beat of war drums has concealed the recent flurry of preparations to disenfranchise millions of disabled workers and their families in the United States.

The Board of Directors of the White Lung Association calls on all patriots to come forward to support those who have build this country through their taxes and hard work. We urge you to protect life and the environment. We urge you to distribute this statement and to send contributions to the White Lung Association.

Greed Reaches a Crisis

Last week the American Bar Association released a report on Asbestos Litigation, which outlines the various legal restrictions and prejudices they agree to be used against people who have asbestos related disease. This action reflects similar agreements, which have been reached with most major insurance companies, the remaining defendants and the bankruptcy courts. These economic pressures reflect the fact that there are over 100,000 asbestos related diseases showing up with the minimum of health screening. If the entire population was carefully monitored asbestos related death and disease could swell to over 1,000,000 the next five years.

Several newspapers have written accounts of lobbyists who are now working with Republican and Democratic Party Congress people to pass legislation, which removes legal and constitutional rights of many asbestos victims without providing any compensation or support with their medical bills. Their proposals call for cruel procedures and delays for these sick people.

Those who are responsible for the death and carnage caused by asbestos use now want to utilize their friends in Congress and the Supreme Court to escape their duty to compensate those whom they poisoned. The lawyers see the writing on the wall and are trying to save half a loaf, their half.

The asbestos victims and their families are in more need than ever before. The Manville Trust and the other schemes pushed on the victims by many of these same people now pay five cents on the dollar or less. WorkerÕs Compensation has proven to be woefully inadequate. Civil lawsuits at one time provided asbestos victims with adequate compensation and medical care. However, most civil lawsuits now leave the victims with little or nothing.

Asbestos Victims Super Fund is needed

The foul schemes of the ABA and Congress must be rejected. Write all your Congress People and tell them you want the White Lung Association Super Fund Program.

The White Lung Super Fund Program would work like this:

First the Program is based up on the Complete Ban of the Use of Asbestos and the Strict Regulation and tax of all remaining Asbestos known and discovered in the United States.

1. Provide $25,000.00 to every asbestos victim within 30 days of their diagnosis of any asbestos related cancers, any asbestos related infection, heart attacks, circulatory problems, asbestosis, plural places and scaring on any lung of ILO classification of 0/l or greater.

2. Provide monthly payments to the individual of $2,000/month, which were not taxed nor off set by any other disability, retirement or social service payments.

3. Provide total medial and long term care benefits for the individual.

4. The benefits would transfer to any surviving spouse until remarriage or death and to any children under the age of 21 unless in school and then under the age of 25.

5. The funds would be provided by the Asbestos Victims Super Fund Program, which would receive all insurance, company and government money earmarked or owed for victims. A percentage of all asbestos taxes, fines and moneys generated by commerce involving asbestos would be made available to the Fund by the agency which collects it.

6. Those individuals who chose to pursue their civil court case would lose the right for themselves or their spouses to obtain benefits from the Fund at the time of filing their case. This program would eliminate all defense lawyers and cap plaintiff lawyers at a standard fee of $800.00 per victim. All court costs would be eliminated. All funds from insurance and company programs could be invested and the interest used to pay current victims. The governing Board of the Super Fund would be selected by the White Lung Association and be composed of 60% asbestos victims.

The only way to solve the asbestos problem is to utilize the entire society. Asbestos has contaminated and diseased the entire world and particularly the United States. The problem cannot be solved part way, particularly part way for the insurance companies and others who profited from asbestos use. The victims must be assured compensation and medical care and all efforts must be made to prevent new victims. If we do not solve the problem from the point of view of the asbestos victims, then society will not benefit. If we solve the problem from the view of the insurance companies and banks, it will not be solved, only put off for years and cause more expense and misery.