Asbestos bill sees changes

As the fate of a federal asbestos compensation bill hangs in the balance, proponents of special provisions for Libby asbestos victims are working to ensure a full Libby "fix" remains in the bill.

On April 13, Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., persuaded bill sponsor Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Penn., to add the Libby provisions to the draft of the Fairness in Asbestos Injury Resolution Act of 2005.

But by April 19, the Libby provision was altered, said Roger Sullivan, a Kalispell attorney whose firm represents more than 400 Libby victims sickened by asbestos exposure from the former W.R. Grace vermiculite mine at Libby.

"It's the give and take of the [political] process," Sullivan said. "The ball remains in play. We're cautiously optimistic and we trust that fairness will win out."

The bill is slated for markup on Thursday, when the Senate Judiciary Committee makes final changes before it's released to the full Senate.

Known as the FAIR Act, the bill would create a $140 billion federally managed trust fund to replace the glut of existing lawsuits filed by victims against asbestos companies such as Grace.

Baucus spokesman Barrett Kaiser said Tuesday that the change was made because bill sponsors were concerned about the potential for overcompensating some Libby asbestos victims.

Baucus' Libby fix would have allowed Level I victims - those exposed to asbestos but not yet sick - to qualify for $400,000. New language in the bill bumps that amount of compensation to Level II victims, those who are "actually sick," Kaiser explained.

"It's hard to make the case that those who aren't sick" should get the $400,000 level of compensation, he said. "We had to make a correction, but the point is, if you're sick from asbestos in Libby, you will qualify for $400,000."

However, Kaiser added that victims who have been exposed to Libby asbestos and are not yet sick can qualify for compensation "down the road."

Baucus has been working with Specter for months to include language for Libby residents that takes into account the unique health problems associated with exposure to the tremolite asbestos from the Libby mine.

"Max has been fighting tooth and nail for a perfect Libby fix," Kaiser said. "He'll continue to do all that he can up until the time the [committee] chairman drops the gavel."

On that note, Baucus had drafted additional language to the bill, written at the request of Libby victims' attorneys, that he wants added during Thursday's markup session that will more specifically guarantee the $400,000 floor of compensation.

Other provisions added earlier by Baucus take into account Libby's special circumstances and should remain in the bill, Kaiser said.

Those provisions include:

. Exempting Libby residents from strict medical and asbestos exposure criteria to qualify for compensation;

. Allowing family members and other Libby residents, in addition to former mine workers, to qualify for compensation;

. Allowing people to be compensated from the Asbestos Trust Fund as well as other sources such as Medicaid and Medicare; and

. Allowing Baucus to advance his proposal establishing a new Libby Health Care Fund.

The $400,000 would go to victims diagnosed with severe asbestosis.

Those with disabling asbestosis would get $850,000, and patients with mesothelioma, a tumorous cancer, would be entitled to $1.1 million under the new provisions. Victims suffering from lung cancer and asbestosis would be entitled to $600,000 for smokers or $1.1 million for nonsmokers.