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Asbestos Exposure

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When asbestos breaks down over time or with use, the fibers of the material can become airborne, presenting a risk of inhaling or ingesting the toxin. Asbestos is a cancer-causing agent, and those heavily exposed can develop scarring in the lungs and later develop lung cancer and mesothelioma.

Asbestos was widely used in piping, insulation, electrical components, machine parts, packaging, flooring, ceiling tiles, roofing, and in many building materials.

If you were exposed to asbestos at your workplace, and have developed cancer or a related illness, you are likely to qualify for compensation.

Asbestos was cheap, durable, fire-resistant and light, and was thought to be the perfect insulating material before research showed it was extremely hazardous to the health.

• Mesothelioma
• Lung Cancer
• Adenocarcinoma
• Asbestosis
• Pulmonary Fibrosis

• Steel workers
• Auto workers
• Military Veterans
• Rubber workers
• Welders
• Machinists
• Construction Workers
• Electricians
• Plumbers & Pipefitters

Occupational Asbestos Exposure

The following tasks are associated with possible high asbestos exposure:

• Installing framework in factory construction projects
• Inspecting factory equipment
• Masonry work
• Machining
• Assembling and repairing boilers and plate work
• Operating plant machines and cranes
• Welding
• Tending to stoves or furnaces
• Applying metal lath
• Laying heating and ventilating pipes
• Forging and heat-treating steel products and tools
• Insulating various types of pipe systems
• Installing acoustic tiles
• Smelting and pouring materials at high temperatures
• Plastering and sanding surface finishes
• Working in an enclosed space with asbestos products (shingles and tiles, etc.)

• In 2010, a painter in Texas who developed mesothelioma after spending much of his life working with texturized top coats and fillers sued a number of asbestos product manufacturers. A jury awarded him an $11 million verdict.
• In 2005, a San Francisco jury awarded a sheet metal worker nearly $2 million dollars after he developed mesothelioma from working with duct connectors and duct sealers, which contained asbestos.
• Owens Corning Fiberglass Corporation was found negligent and a jury awarded one victim of mesothelioma a verdict of nearly $3.5 million. His attorney said the man worked for Owens Corning  in the 1960s and was exposed to their toxic insulation product.
• In the 1990s, two engineers filed lawsuits against North American Refractory Company (NARCO). According to their lawyers, the victims, who suffered from related lung diseases, were exposed to high levels of asbestos dust from a gunning mix. The jury found North American Refractory Company liable and awarded the men $7 million.

EPA Asbestos Approval

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will no longer evaluate asbestos in homes and businesses as a serious danger or health risk, as the EPA announced in recent reports.

The EPA asbestos decisions, under Scott Pruitt, decided it is unnecessary to evaluate the health risks of the toxic substance despite the continuing workplace and home hazards that still lead to mesothelioma deaths for up to 3,000 Americans each year.

The agency will still evaluate and require approval for any new use of asbestos, but let the already-present toxin remains in many public building, businesses, schools, houses and hospitals. Fifty-five countries have a total ban on the use of asbestos, including nations like the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Japan.

The new EPA asbestos stance has gone mostly undeterred because the current administration sees eye-to-eye on safety deregulation and pro-corporate interests. The health and safety of American workers and consumers, however, already in danger, could lose its footing as the EPA drifts toward toxic tolerance.

EPA Asbestos Standards

According to the EPA Website, exposure to asbestos increases the risk of developing lung diseases like mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis. That risk is made worse by certain factors, such as smoking and long-term exposure in workplaces known to be laden with the toxin.

There is no safe amount of asbestos exposure, and the greater the exposure to asbestos, the greater the chance of developing severe health problems. Lung disease symptoms may lay dormant after exposure, and can take years to develop.

Asbestos-related health conditions can be difficult to identify and confused with other respiratory health issues. Healthcare professionals help identify the possibility of asbestos exposure by looking at the person’s medical, work, and environmental history. Known major health effects have been linked to asbestos exposure including lung cancer, pulmonary fibrosis, adenocarcinoma and mesothelioma.

On one hand the EPA regards asbestos as a cancer-causing agent, which fills older buildings and presents health hazards to various Ohio workers and consumers, and yet the agency has not taken measures to eradicate the toxin as safety advocates say they could.

The EPA has not properly evaluated the dangerous legacy of existing and so levels of contamination are unknown in Ohio. We do know asbestos exists in many areas in homes, schools, hospitals, factories, auto products, and workplaces but there is little help in evaluating an individual’s Ohio asbestos exposure risks.

Despite a significant reduction in the use of asbestos in past decades, annual deaths continue because asbestos-related diseases lay dormant.