WASHINGTON — A bill opposed by veterans groups that affects people
poisoned by asbestos triggered strong debate Wednesday during a first
hearing in the Senate.
Republican senators, including sponsor Jeff Flake of Arizona, argued
the bill will ferret out fraudulent compensation claims by veterans with
asbestos illnesses. But Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois and other
Democrats said it was a giveaway to companies fighting lawsuits over the
dangerous building material, which causes lung damage and cancer.
The legislation, called the FACT Act, passed the House last month
entirely on Republican votes and is now opposed by 17 national veterans
groups, including Military Officers Association of America, AMVETS and
Vietnam Veterans of America. It requires the confidential information of
hundreds of thousands of victims — as many as 30 percent of them
veterans — be made publicly available for the first time.
The groups wrote a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee, stating
the FACT Act is “a cynical ploy by the asbestos industry to avoid
compensating its victims who are seeking justice in court.”
Flake said there is evidence of widespread fraud among the asbestos
claimants that has been compared to Enron, a $70-billion energy company
that collapsed in scandal in 2001, and that his bill is needed to shed
light on the wrongdoing.
“The only way to be sure is to bring transparency to the trust system,” Flake said during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing.
Dozens of trusts holding about $18 billion have been set up throughout
the country by manufacturers of asbestos to compensate victims, who are
coming forward in high numbers now because exposure to the substance
causes disease decades later. About 10,000-15,000 people die every year
from asbestos-related illnesses.
“With this amount of money at stake you’d think there would be some
level of oversight but there isn’t,” said Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa,
chairman of the committee.
At the same time, other companies who have not paid into the trusts are
fighting new civil lawsuits from victims. The bill would provide the
companies a database of the trust claims and victims to use in their
defense in court.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and companies that once produced asbestos
have lobbied for years to pass the legislation amid a wave of poisoning
suits. The Government Accountability Office found the changes could give
industry defense attorneys a legal advantage.
Veterans who received compensation from an asbestos trust could have
their work histories, compensation amount and partial Social Security
numbers posted in bulk on a court’s public docket, which Durbin said
could be a boon to identity thieves.
“You want the victims to disclose all of their information and waive
their privacy. You think that is the answer?” Durbin asked bill
supporters.
He said the bill also would enable companies to drag out civil lawsuits, a criticism also made by the veterans groups.
“Sadly, we know what happens when these cases are dragged out,” Durbin said. “Victims are not alive to see the result.”
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