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Managing America: Health

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Week Ending April 13, 2006

S.RES.131 A resolution designating the first week of April 2007 as "National Asbestos Awareness Week".

The resolution preamble affirms what Congress has known for some time: Asbestos fibers are invisible and breathing them in can cause mesothelioma and other diseases.

The diseases, however, may not show up for 10 to as much as fifty years later but once the symptoms are evident life expectancy is between 6 and 24 months.

It is a disease without cure and the Nation is still at risk because although the country has cut its asbestos use the US still consumes 7,000 metric tons for use in products nationwide. Asbestos use in buildings and public facilities was prohibited in structures built before 1975 but exposure continues.

The future of the disease is still uncharted. This resolution designates the first week in April as National Asbestos Awareness Week, a time for warning and learning about the risk.

Sponsor:  Senator Max Baucus (MT)

Vote: Passed Senate by Unanimous Consent April 10, 2007

Cost to the taxpayers: No discernible cost

Earmark Certification:   Not applicable to this bill.

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Whereas dangerous asbestos fibers are invisible and cannot be smelled or tasted;

Whereas the inhalation of airborne asbestos fibers can cause significant damage;

Whereas these fibers can cause mesothelioma, asbestosis, and other health problems;

Whereas asbestos-related diseases can take 10 to 50 years to present themselves;

Whereas the expected survival time for those diagnosed with mesothelioma is between 6 and 24 months;

Whereas generally little is known about late stage treatment and there is no cure for asbestos-related diseases;

Whereas early detection of asbestos-related diseases may give some patients increased treatment options and might improve their prognosis;

Whereas the United States has substantially reduced its consumption of asbestos yet continues to consume almost 7,000 metric tons of the fibrous mineral for use in certain products throughout the Nation;

Whereas asbestos-related diseases have killed thousands of people in the United States;

Whereas asbestos exposures continue and safety and prevention will reduce and has reduced significantly asbestos exposure and asbestos-related diseases;

Whereas asbestos has been a cause of occupational cancer;

Whereas thousands of workers in the United States face significant asbestos exposure;

Whereas thousands of people in the United States die from asbestos-related diseases every year;

Whereas a significant percentage of all asbestos-related disease victims were exposed to asbestos on naval ships and in shipyards;

Whereas asbestos was used in the construction of a significant number of office buildings and public facilities built before 1975;

Whereas people in the small community of Libby, Montana have asbestos-related diseases at a significantly higher rate than the national average and suffer from mesothelioma at a significantly higher rate than the national average; and

Whereas the establishment of a `National Asbestos Awareness Week' would raise public awareness about the prevalence of asbestos-related diseases and the dangers of asbestos exposure: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) designates the first week of April 2007 as `National Asbestos Awareness Week';

(2) urges the Surgeon General, as a public health issue, to warn and educate people that asbestos exposure may be hazardous to their health; and

(3) respectfully requests the Secretary of the Senate to transmit a copy of this resolution to the Surgeon General.

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