AAJ Responds To WSJ Report About Rising Asbestos Claims

Workers' Compensation claimant's attorneys have lived through decades of denial and delay of asbestos disease claims by the asbestos industry and their suppliers, manufacturers and distributors of asbestos products. Asbestos, a known carcinogen, was marketed throughout the US for decades and still is not banned in the US. 

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The energies and economies of the asbestos / insurance industry have been misplaced, for what now seems like generations. Instead of trying to defeat the claims, the asbestos industry, which gained enormous profit from trading in a deadly product, would best serve public health by supporting a total ban on asbestos manufacturing/importation and use in the US and support medical research for a cure for the rare and fatal malignancies it causes, ie. mesothelioma and lung cancer.

The following is a statement from American Association for Justice President Mary Alice McLarty, in response to theWall Street Journal story “As Asbestos Claims Rise, So Do Worries About Fraud:”

“Asbestos has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans and 10,000 more will die this year.

“Countless lives could have been saved and lawsuits prevented if Big Asbestos had been transparent and disclosed the dangers of asbestos decades ago.  Instead, as more Americans die, this industry continues to invest massive resources into evading accountability, vilifying the victims and opposing a ban on asbestos. 

“The Wall Street Journal and Congress should not be aiding this campaign to let Big Asbestos off the hook for killing Americans.”

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As the world's largest trial bar, the American Association for Justice (formerly known as the Association of Trial Lawyers of America) works to make sure people have a fair chance to receive justice through the legal system when they are injured by the negligence or misconduct of others—even when it means taking on the most powerful corporations. Visit http://www.justice.org/newsroom.

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Asbestos Ban In Canada Gets Boast - Parti Quebecois Wins Election!

 "...the Parti Quebecois (PQ) said this week that, if it's elected, it would cancel a $58-million loan Quebec's Liberal government approved to help reopen the Jeffrey Mine, one of Canada's last asbestos mines."

Click here to read:
Quebec separatists win election, say TV networks

Read more about the battle to Ban Asbestos in Canada

Workers' Compensation: Canadian Asbestos Hypocrisy

Feb 18, 2010

The Canadian Journal of Medicine had also endorsed a ban on Canadian asbestos production. "Canada's government must put an end to this death-dealing charade. Canada must immediately drop its opposition to placing ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Why is the US Still in the Asbestos Business?

Aug 01, 2011

Our northern neighbor, Canada. Asbestos has not been mined in the US since 2002. The US imports 99% of the asbestos it consumed from Canada. In fact the US consumed 1,040 metric tons in 2010 which was an increased ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Asbestos: ADAO to Livestream the film ...

Sep 05, 2011

The documentary, directed by Ontario filmmaker Kathleen Mullen, is “a personal investigation into the continued use of asbestos” and details her father's tragic death due to exposure to asbestos from Canadian mining.

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: $2 Million Verdict to Plastic Compounder ...

Dec 11, 2011

To this day there is no asbestos ban in effect in the US. The Canadian asbestos industry still exports asbestos fiber used in the US and other parts of the world. On Thursday, The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization ...

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Related articles

• Parti Quebecois wins minority in Quebec election
• Asbestos's future in Quebec election crosshairs
• Quebec parties hailed for plans to end asbestos mining

This Is Just Plain Sick: US Consumption of Asbestos Increased 13% in 2011

The US Geological Survey has reported that US consumption of asbestos fiber increased 13% in 2011. Asbestos is a known carcinogen and the cause of mesothelioma, a rare and fatal cancer. The US has yet to ban asbestos fiber. 

"U.S. apparent consumption of asbestos was calculated to be
1,180 t in 2011, a 13% increase from 1,040 t in 2010 (table 1).
It is likely that much of the additional 140 t of chrysotile
imported in 2011 went into stocks for future use rather than
being used because it was unlikely that markets had expanded.
Roofing products accounted for 41% of U.S. consumption;
diaphragms for the chloralkali industry, 28%; coating and
compounds, 2%; plastics, less than 1%; and other uses, 29%.
Much of the chrysotile for which no end use was specified was
likely to have been imported and (or) used by the chloralkali
industry in 2011, based on trade data reported by United
Business Media Global Trade (undated). Asbestos acts as a
semipermeable diaphragm to separate the chlorine generated
at the cell anode from the starting brine in the electrolytic cell.
Chrysotile was the only type of asbestos used in the United
States in 2011, 49% of which was grade 7, 16% was grade 5,
12% was grade 4, and 23% was unspecified."

Read USGS 2011 Mineral Report

More about banning asbestos

Workers' Compensation: WHO Urges Worldwide Asbestos Ban ...

Oct 06, 2011

WHO Urges Worldwide Asbestos Ban: Mesothelioma Rates Surge. The World Health Organization urges a worldwide ban on asbestos productions, as deaths from mesothelioma continue to escalate: "In conclusion, malignant ...

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Workers' Compensation: Asbestos: Not Banned in US But Use ...

Jan 29, 2010

The use of asbestos, a known carcinogen, is not yet banned in the US, but the use of it continues to decline. Asbestos has not been mine in the US since 2002 and therefore the country is dependent upon imports for asbestos ...

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Workers' Compensation: UN Agency Urges Worldwide Asbestos Ban

Sep 16, 2010

The UN International Labour Organization (ILO) has called for a worldwide ban on asbestos production citing that there is an asbestos related death every 5 minute and asbestos already claims 107000 lives each year.

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

Workers' Compensation: Report Urges Worldwide Ban on Asbestos ...

Jul 22, 2010

Corporate greed resulting in the loss of life is the conclusion of a major investigative report just published concerning the worldwide asbestos trade and global epidemic of disease. The report, strongly urging the rationale for a ...

http://workers-compensation.blogspot.com/

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