OKLAHOMA CITY MESOTHELIOMA

Asbestos-related mortalities in Oklahoma are concentrated in Oklahoma City and Tulsa

OKLAHOMA CITY MESOTHELIOMA

May 14, 2010 – Compared with other states in the U.S., Oklahoma ranks No. 33 for asbestos-related mortalities related to asbestosis and mesothelioma. Most of the mesothelioma deaths in Oklahoma were recorded in the urban areas of Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

Mesothelioma is the signature asbestos-related cancer and is diagnosed in 3,000 people every year in the United States. It is primarily caused by occupational asbestos exposure brought on by employers who overlooked work-site safety in favor of greater profit margins.

California, Florida, New York and Pennsylvania are the nation’s leading states for asbestos-related mortalities, says the EWG study.

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

Oklahoma City mesothelioma

According to the report, asbestos exposure killed at least 334 people in Oklahoma between 1979 and 2001. This figure, however, “likely represents less than 20 percent of total asbestos mortality during that time,” the report says, because “mesothelioma was not tracked by the federal government as a cause of death until 1999.”

When the government began tracking mesothelioma as a cause of death, U.S. mortality from asbestos illnesses more than doubled, from 935 in 1998, to 2,343 in 1999.

The EWG study said at least 104 people died of asbestosis and at least 232 people died of mesothelioma. Oklahoma mortality figures for asbestosis and mesothelioma are also considered to be underestimated for similar reasons.

Oklahoma City mesothelioma lawyer

If you worked with asbestos-based materials in the past and have been diagnosed with mesothelioma, you can obtain a free, comprehensive and private consultation with an accomplished mesothelioma lawyer at Weitz & Luxenberg.

Protect your family’s financial future today.