Citizen Urges Senators To Vote "No" On The Specter-Leahy Asbestos Bill

A lot of Americans believe that The Specter-Leahy Asbestos Bill will let the asbestos companies off the hook--which is exactly what these companies want--and will leave asbestos cancer victims is a low and hopeless situation, just as The Black Lung Fund did years ago. Click here to read Jonathan Barry's letter outlining why his US Senators should vote "no" on the Specter-Leahy Asbestos Bill...

32 Year Old Australian Breaks Skiing Record To Further Asbestos Cancer Awareness

Nick Will, a Chef from Canberra, Australia, has broken a world skiing record by skiing downhill for eight days straight (well, he got to rest for 2 hours each day, but the feat is a record nonetheless.) Mr. Will's stunt was performed in the hope of attracting more attention to mesothelioma and other asbestos related diseases; Nick Will's father died after contracting asbestos cancer.

And in other asbestos cancer awareness news: In England, two sisters will parachute out of a plane on Saturday, October 8, at The Hinton Sky Diving Center in Bicester, UK. This stunt is another being performed in an effort to focus more public attention on the dangers of asbestos. Ray Malone, the father of the two sisters, died as a result of contracting mesothelioma.

More Bad News for Australia's Hardie, et al: Priest Awarded $$$ by The Dust Diseases Tribunal

The Australian priest Father Robert McNeill, who has been diagnosed with asbestos cancer, has been awarded $AUS 200,000 in compensation by Australia's Dust Diseases Tribunal. This is case is especially notable because Father McNeill was exposed only briefly to asbestos back in the 1960's; mere hours of exposure while working with asbestos cement was enough to cause the deadly mesothelioma that has taken hold in McNeil's lung lining.

This is bad new for Australia's Hardie company and other firms because of the precedent that has been set. Thousands upon thousands of new claims are expected as a result of the McNeill ruling, and each successful claim will most likely result in a monetary award similar in size to McNeill's.

Click here to read the full story...

Where Are All The Local Asbestos Illness-Related Support Groups

"For all the people in the region suffering from asbestos-related illnesses and the families they leave behind, not a single support group exists in Eastern Connecticut or statewide"

That's what Norwich Bulletin reporter Adam Bowles* reported in an article that was published online today, noting that local support groups exists for all kinds of illnesses, but none exists for the families and victims of asbestos-related illness.

But people are starting to do something about the lack of organized support. In California, Linda Reinstein runs the recently founded Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, a not-for-profit group that provides resources and support for victim and their families. The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization currently has 1,000 members.