January 29, 2006 2:48 PM ET Asbestostruth.org expands to tell working families the truth about asbestos reform WASHINGTON, D.C - The Committee to Protect Mesothelioma Victims (CPMV) announced today the launch of an addition to the AsbestosTruth website: workersforasbestostruth.org. The new addition will allow working families to take a stand against the asbestos trust fund bill, expected to be considered by the U.S. Senate in the coming weeks. The FAIR Act The FAIR Act, which could hit the Senate floor by early February, will establish a trust fund for qualified victims of asbestos exposure, while relieving hundreds of companies of their asbestos liabilities. However, millions of American workers who were unknowingly exposed to asbestos will receive far less, if any, compensation through the trust fund than they would through the court system. The fund will exclude many victims from receiving compensation including most who have any history of cigarette smoking. Today, nearly 1.3 million workers are still exposed to asbestos while on the job. The FAIR Act will do little to help protect these workers and will establish an arbitrary date by which victims must be exposed to asbestos to be protected. Asbestos: Worker Cancer Connection Chair of the CPMV, Susan Vento, believes the trust fund is unfair to all asbestos victims, including working families. Her husband, former Minnesota Congressman Bruce Vento, died in October, 2000 of mesothelioma, an always fatal form of cancer caused by asbestos exposure. He was exposed while working in a factory job as a teenager to put himself through college. “We hope that this new portion of our website will help to educate and activate labor unions and working families across the country. It is important that every worker be made aware of the implications of this bill and how they will be affected in the future,” says Vento. Trust Fund Insufficient In addition to CPMV, many other groups have questioned the adequacy of the $140 billion fund including the Congressional Budget Office who, in November, declared that the fund could go bankrupt within three years. Peg Seminario, AFL-CIO safety director, claims "We have always said that the amount of money is insufficient, especially the upfront funding." The federation has recently voiced several problems they have with the bill, including the possibility that the proposed trust may not start paying claims immediately after enactment. To urge your Senator to oppose this bill please sign the online petition at: www.workersforasbestostruth.org today!
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