ALABAMA ASBESTOS LAWYER

No southern comfort in Alabama’s asbestos mortality statistics

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Every Weitz & Luxenberg asbestos cancer attorney understands the emotional and financial complexities of losing a family member to an asbestos-related disease like mesothelioma – and exactly what is required to secure maximum compensation for the injured worker’s family. An Alabama asbestos lawyer is here for you.

ALABAMA ASBESTOS LAWYER

June 30, 2010 – Compared with other states in the country, Alabama ranks No. 19 for asbestos-related deaths due to asbestosis and mesothelioma, with a high concentration of mortalities centered around Birmingham and Mobile, says a recent study.

The study was based on an examination of state death certificates recorded by the federal government between 1979 and 2001. The results were published by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a nonprofit public information organization headquartered in Washington, D.C.

According to the report, asbestosis and mesothelioma killed at least 741 people in Alabama between 1979 and 2001. Asbestosis claimed 507 lives, and at least 248 Alabama state residents died of mesothelioma, known the world over as the signature asbestos-related cancer.

What is mesothelioma?

Mesothelioma is diagnosed in 3,000 people every year in the United States, and is fatal in every case. It is a preventable cancer caused primarily by occupational asbestos exposure.

Mesothelioma is usually the result of negligence on the part of employers and asbestos product manufacturers who deliberately overlooked work-site health safety to reduce expenses and boost profits.

Alabama counties plagued by asbestos disease

Two Alabama counties recorded the most asbestos-related deaths between 1979 and 2001 – and were included on the EWG’s list of the “Top 100 U.S. Counties” reporting the highest mortality rates from asbestosis and mesothelioma. They are Mobile County (ranked No. 35 with 234 deaths) and Birmingham’s Jefferson County (ranked No. 68 with 136 deaths).

Notably, the report says these statistics likely “represent less than 20 percent of total asbestos mortality during that time,” because, “mesothelioma was not tracked by the federal government as a cause of death until 1999.”

Furthermore, the figures do not include a single lung cancer death caused by asbestos. (National estimates of lung cancer mortality from asbestos range from 5,000 to 10,000 per year for that period.)

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