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Legal - Mesothelioma Legislation - Banning Asbestos

Which of the following statements is false?

• A. About 10,000 people a year die of conditions related to asbestos.
• B. In the next twelve months, about 3,000 more people will be diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma caused by exposure to asbestos.
• C. In every U.S. state, asbestos abatement and the removal of asbestos from public schools, office buildings and stores costs millions of dollars every year.
• D. Asbestos has not been banned for use in the U.S.
• E. None of the above.

The fact that the correct answer is 'E' may surprise you, especially if you're among the majority of people who believe that asbestos was banned in the U.S. after warnings were issued in the 1970s. The truth is, however, that the United States is one of very few major industrialized nations that has not banned asbestos entirely in all of its forms. It continues to be used in gaskets, friction products, roofing materials, fireproofing materials - in fact, into hundreds of consumer products that are used every day.

There are currently 40 countries that have completely banned asbestos, including most countries in the European Union. Japan is expected to pass similar legislation in 2008.

If the current Ban Asbestos in America 2007 act passes its final hurdle, the United States will join the rest of the nations that have made a commitment to ban the hazardous substance responsible for thousands of deaths each year. Senator Patty Murray (D - Wash) first introduced the bill, which proposes to totally ban asbestos in the United States in 2001. Each year, she has reintroduced the bill with refinements. In October 2007, the Ban Asbestos in America 2007 bill was passed by the Senate. All that remains now is for it to win House approval and gain the President's signature and it will be enacted into law.

The Ban Asbestos in America In 2007 bill has three major components which make it an essential piece of legislation.

The bill bans all uses of asbestos in the United States.

The Murray bill will prohibit the importation, manufacture, processing and distribution in the U.S. of products containing asbestos. It covers all known types of asbestos and three other durable fibers with a similar structure to asbestos. Upon passage of the bill, the Environmental Protection Agency will issue rules that will result in the removal of almost all asbestos products within two years of the bill's enactment.

The Murray Bill Expands Research and Treatment for Mesothelioma

The bill focuses on more than simply banning asbestos. It calls for funding and establishment of a network to establish research and treatment centers, better record-keeping of asbestos related diseases, and additional research into the causes and cures of mesothelioma and related diseases. Specifics include:

• $50 million to fund ten new research and treatment centers that will pioneer new treatment, early detection, and prevention strategies.
• Creation of a national registry for asbestos-related diseases to help scientists conduct better research.
• Directing the Department of Defense to conduct additional research on asbestos disease, treatment and early detection in recognition that about one-third of mesothelioma victims were exposed while serving in the U.S. Navy.
• Directing NIOSH to review the current knowledge on asbestos disease, health effects and measurement methods, and recommend areas where new research is needed.

The Bill includes funding for and creates a framework for public awareness programs to raise awareness of asbestos and its dangers.

The bill calls for the EPA to conduct a public education campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of asbestos exposure in the home and workplace. The awareness campaign will also call on patients and front-line health care providers to raise awareness of the diseases caused by asbestos and treatment options available. The EPA will work with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of Labor to raise awareness of consumer products that may contain asbestos.

The bill does not, however, ban all asbestos containing products from use in the U.S. Among the compromises that were made to pass the bill was the removal of a sentence defining which products would be banned under the law. The deleted definition, according to the EPA, should have read "any product to which asbestos is deliberately added or used, or in which asbestos is otherwise present in any concentration".

With that sentence missing, early supporters claim the bill no longer bans all asbestos-containing products from sale. Instead, it will allow the sale of products that contain asbestos if the asbestos was not deliberately added. That would mean that the asbestos-tainted vermiculite from the Libby, Montana mine could be legally sold, as could asbestos-contaminated talc obtained from a mine in upstate New York.

The bill and its contents continue to be debated.

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