Washington, DC, Apr. 23--The Senate on Thursday blocked a proposal to create a multibillion-dollar fund that would have made payments to thousands of people suffering from asbestos-related ailments.
The Chicago Tribune reported that the vote reflected the difficulty of determining how to pay long-suffering victims without racking up huge liability costs that could cripple many companies. Both sides say some action is necessary, but they disagree sharply on what should be done, and Congress has struggled for years to find a solution.
Patricia Corona, of west suburban Glen Ellyn, who suffers from asbestos-related cancer, said she breathed a sigh of relief when the bill was blocked.
"How can they place a price on a person's life?" Corona said Thursday. "I think those of us who have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, which we all know is a death sentence, should have a day in court."
Mesothelioma is a cancer caused only by asbestos.
Cook County has the second highest number of asbestos-related deaths in the nation, according to a survey of government data compiled by the Washington-based Environmental Working Group.
Asbestos is still in use in the United States--mostly in fire-proofing. The legislation includes a nationwide ban.
Under current law, hundreds of thousands of cases are litigated individually. It can take years to resolve a single case, costing companies millions of dollars, with much of that going to lawyers, and costing victims precious time.
Industry groups, claiming litigation and large lawsuits are forcing them into bankruptcy, have urged Congress to prohibit individual lawsuits and instead create an industry-funded pool to pay out a specified amount to each victim. The bill that was considered Thursday would have done essentially that.
"This is one of those unique situations where all of the parties, all of them, and including, I might add, many of the trial lawyers involved in this area, understand some different resolution of this issue is needed other than the present tort system," said Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.). "Here, nearly all stakeholders want a bill."
But many victims were adamantly opposed, saying the proposed $124 billion fund was too small to handle all the claims, would not have paid enough to individual sufferers, and was essentially a bailout for reckless companies who knew of the risks from asbestos.
While the vote gave victims like Corona hope, others with a stake in the process were disappointed.
Michael Baroody, executive vice president of the National Association of Manufacturers, said a trust fund is crucial to preventing companies from crumbling under the weight of asbestos-related litigation.
"This has bankrupted more than 70 companies, causing people to lose jobs or their 401(k)s and pension plans to be significantly diluted, if not destroyed," Baroody said. "There is very little good to be said about the current system, nothing good actually. It is broken, and that is why we need to fix it."
Steve Sabo, an asbestos victim from Monessen, PA who supports the creation of a trust fund, agreed. "The system now is no good for us victims," he said. "I feel we should give a little and take a little and get this done because it is now or never."
President Bush told newspaper editors Wednesday, "Asbestos reform legislation is stuck in the Senate, ought to go forward."
But on a 50-47 vote, supporters fell ten votes short of the 60 needed to force debate and a final vote on the bill.
Senators will seek a compromise. The failed proposal offered victims a maximum of $1 million, an amount critics said wasn't enough.
"Many of these individuals who develop asbestos-related diseases die an excruciatingly painful death," said Dr. Jacqueline Moline, a doctor who specializes in asbestos cases at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in New York.
Carlton Carl, a spokesman for the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, said victims of asbestos-related diseases usually get more through litigation than the bill would have offered.
But Gary Karr, spokesman for the American Insurance Association, said that under the current system, people who have asbestos scarring in their lungs but are not sick are winning large awards and taking money away from those who are deathly ill. He also blamed trial lawyers for taking a large percentage of awards.
Richard Lemen, former assistant surgeon general, called for Congress to ban asbestos.
"What disappoints me is that the Congress has not taken the step that some 20 other countries around the world have and that is banning asbestos," Lemen said. "That would have reduced the need for such legislation."
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) voted against the bill but said she would push for legislation to ban asbestos. "I was shocked to find out that asbestos is being imported and people are still being exposed," Murray said.
Corona, 72, the Chicago-area cancer patient, said she is not optimistic Congress will pass a bill that treats victims fairly.
"When senators get involved with these issues, it is always big business that wins," she said. "Always."
