News Coverage
Congress looking to create a national asbestos victims fund
Published January 5, 2005
Kai Ryssdal, anchor: Halliburton announced earlier this week two of its subsidiaries were getting out from under Chapter 11 after settling thousands of asbestos lawsuits.
Now Congress is looking to create a national asbestos victims fund. Marketplace's Stacy Vanek-Smith has that story.
Stacy Vanek-Smith reporting: Asbestos kills about 10,000 people in the US each year. Companies like Halliburton and Owens-Corning have paid out billions in settlements. Last year, Congress tried to set up a $140 billion victims fund, and that measure's back on the table.
Mr. Richard Wiles (Environmental Working Group): We're just at the beginning of a tidal wave of asbestos mortality.
Vanek-Smith: Richard Wiles is with the Environmental Working Group. He says about 40 million Americans were exposed, and symptoms can take decades to emerge. He says $140 billion won't be enough.
Mr. Wiles: If you look at what it's cost in the past and then project that out into the future, something at least twice as large, so roughly $300 billion would get you into a range that at least was plausible.
Vanek-Smith: The bill would block people from suing companies directly. Instead, firms would pay into the fund. Wiles says most victims would fare better in court, but many businesses say they just can't afford more expensive lawsuits. I'm Stacy Vanek-Smith for Marketplace.