Bill to Ban Asbestos Reintroduced by Oregon Legislators

Legislation & Litigation

Written by Michelle Whitmer

Reading Time: 4 mins
Publication Date: 04/18/2023
Fact Checked
Our fact-checking process begins with a thorough review of all sources to ensure they are high quality. Then we cross-check the facts with original medical or scientific reports published by those sources, or we validate the facts with reputable news organizations, medical and scientific experts and other health experts. Each page includes all sources for full transparency.
Reviewed

Asbestos.com is the nation’s most trusted mesothelioma resource

The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com has provided patients and their loved ones the most updated and reliable information on mesothelioma and asbestos exposure since 2006.

Our team of Patient Advocates includes a medical doctor, a registered nurse, health services administrators, veterans, VA-accredited Claims Agents, an oncology patient navigator and hospice care expert. Their combined expertise means we help any mesothelioma patient or loved one through every step of their cancer journey.

More than 30 contributors, including mesothelioma doctors, survivors, health care professionals and other experts, have peer-reviewed our website and written unique research-driven articles to ensure you get the highest-quality medical and health information.

About The Mesothelioma Center at Asbestos.com

  • Assisting mesothelioma patients and their loved ones since 2006.
  • Helps more than 50% of mesothelioma patients diagnosed annually in the U.S.
  • A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau.
  • 5-star reviewed mesothelioma and support organization.
Learn More About Us

Testimonials

My family has only the highest compliment for the assistance and support that we received from The Mesothelioma Center. This is a staff of compassionate and knowledgeable individuals who respect what your family is experiencing and who go the extra mile to make an unfortunate diagnosis less stressful. Information and assistance were provided by The Mesothelioma Center at no cost to our family.
Lashawn
Mesothelioma patient’s daughter
  • Google Review Rating
  • BBB Review Rating

How to Cite Asbestos.com’s Article

APA

Whitmer, M. (2023, April 19). Bill to Ban Asbestos Reintroduced by Oregon Legislators. Asbestos.com. Retrieved June 8, 2023, from https://www.asbestos.com/news/2023/04/18/reinstein-asbestos-ban-reintroduced/

MLA

Whitmer, Michelle. "Bill to Ban Asbestos Reintroduced by Oregon Legislators." Asbestos.com, 19 Apr 2023, https://www.asbestos.com/news/2023/04/18/reinstein-asbestos-ban-reintroduced/.

Chicago

Whitmer, Michelle. "Bill to Ban Asbestos Reintroduced by Oregon Legislators." Asbestos.com. Last modified April 19, 2023. https://www.asbestos.com/news/2023/04/18/reinstein-asbestos-ban-reintroduced/.

Two Oregon legislators have reintroduced a bill to end the importation of asbestos, a known carcinogen banned in nearly 70 other countries. The bill would amend the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 and ban asbestos in the United States. 

The Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act of 2023, first introduced in 2019, was reintroduced March 30 by Sen. Jeff Merkley and U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici. It would “prohibit the manufacture, processing, use and distribution in commerce of commercial asbestos and mixtures and articles containing commercial asbestos, and for other purposes,” according to the bill. 

Reintroduction of this bill comes at a pivotal time as the Environmental Protection Agency considers a proposed asbestos ban

“This long overdue legislation will stop hundreds of tons of raw asbestos imports and asbestos-containing products from entering the United States,” said Linda Reinstein, president of the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, which she co-founded in 2004. 

Reinstein’s husband Alan, the bill’s namesake, died of mesothelioma in 2006. The disease is caused by exposure to asbestos and there is no cure.

“ARBAN will protect all Americans — especially vulnerable workers, disadvantaged communities, consumers, first responders and children — who are most at risk of being exposed to this deadly carcinogen,” Reinstein said.

EPA Also Exploring Asbestos Ban 

In 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed a ban on chrysotile asbestos. The ban would force U.S. companies, like those in the chloralkali industry, to stop using asbestos within two years. 

As many as 40,000 deaths are caused by asbestos exposure each year in America, according to the American Public Health Association. Currently chrysotile asbestos, or white asbestos, is still being imported and used in the U.S. today. The chloralkali industry utilizes it to create chlorine that is then used to disinfect drinking water. Public comment on the EPA ban closed April 17.

Some companies in the chloralkali industry suggested it could take more than a decade to shift away from using white asbestos, while critics say it can be done more quickly. 

EPA officials banned asbestos in 1989. However, an aggressive counterattack from the asbestos industry led the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit to overturn the ban in 1991. In addition to its use in the chloralkali industry, asbestos can still be found in aftermarket automotive brakes and linings, brake blocks, sheet gaskets and other vehicle products.

‘Asbestos Is a Silent Killer’

When Alan Reinstein was diagnosed with mesothelioma, neither he nor his wife had ever heard of the disease. He died within three years of his diagnosis. Linda Reinstein co-founded the ADAO with Doug Larkin, who’s loved one was also diagnosed with mesothelioma. Together they began their mission to end asbestos exposure and protect the public health. Larkin died in 2017 of ALS.

“Asbestos is a silent killer—a stealthy and insidious assassin that can lie dormant in homes, schools, workplaces and consumer products, only to strike when least expected,” Reinstein wrote in an email to Asbestos.com. “Exposure to even the smallest whisper of asbestos fibers poses a grave danger, as it can lead to serious and often fatal diseases, such as mesothelioma, that may not manifest for 10 to 50 years after exposure.”

Asbestos, which was once widely used in flooring, insulation and building materials, causes mesothelioma and a progressive lung disease called asbestosis. Hundreds of thousands of patients have filed asbestos lawsuits to provide compensation to cover medical bills and lost wages. Family members who have secondary exposure to asbestos may also file a legal claim.

For Reinstein, banning asbestos means one thing: saving lives.

“If we sat in grief and anger, nothing would change,” Reinstein said. “I see Alan, Bill and Doug in our work today as we fight for a toxic-free world.”

legal scale of justice icon
Access Trust Funds, Grants & Compensation for Mesothelioma
Get Financial Assistance