The events of Sept. 11 left Americans with, above all, questions. The recent 9/11 Commission tried to answer some of them, but rescue workers and New Yorkers worry their health is still in danger. A recently proposed bill could insure them to seek better health treatment.

Soon after Sept. 11, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was quick to assure New Yorkers the air they were breathing — even with the still-prevalant poisonous gas and dust — was safe. An internal investigation later found that the White House Council on Environmental Quality “convinced EPA to add reassuring statements and delete cautionary ones,” says an article published by Inter Press News Services.

During a short time after the Trade Center attacks, the EPA helped clean and test about 4,000 apartments in the area, but tens of thousands of other sites have yet to be officially checked for toxins such as asbestos, mercury and lead.

According to Mount Sinai’s occupational health clinic’s most recent figures, about half of the 9,000 rescue and recovery workers still suffer from respiratory problems.

In March, a group of recovery workers and downtown residents sued the EPA to demand further testing and cleanup, as well as the creation of a fund to pay for medical monitoring of affected people.

A woman who lived one and a half blocks from Ground Zero says she had her home tested and found relatively high levels of fiberglass, asbestos and other toxins. She claims that on the day of the attacks, “thick gray dust mixed with burnt papers pervaded the apartment though open windows.” As a result, she contracted a rash on her face and had severe headaches, sinus problems and a deep cough, she says.

Recently, two Congress members proposed expanding federal health insurance to downtown residents and workers to cover their physical and psychological treatment and the cost of prescription medications. And the bill would increase the number of people being monitored from 12,000 to 40,000.

A West Palm Beach, Fla., woman is celebrating a $1.1 million victory against an asbestos manufacturer, but the happiness is bittersweet, as she must celebrate it alone. Her husband, who would have benefitted most from the lawsuit, died before it came to fruition.

Dennis Kavanaugh worked as a carpenter for more than 30 years, often coming home covered in a snow-like dust — breathing it in, spitting it out — that would kill him slowly, bit by bit for the rest of his life, says an article in the Palm Beach Post.

A federal locomotive safety law prohibits asbestos victims from making asbestos injury claims against train manufacturers in state courts, ruled the Ohio Supreme Court 5-2 recently.

The decision upholds a lower court ruling that barred about 2,000 former railway workers from adding manufacturers to their separate lawsuits against nearly 60 companies that made, sold or used asbestos, according to the Associated Press. The workers say they were exposed to the substance while working in or maintaining rail cars.

The decision wasn’t a comment on the validity of the workers’ claims, but the justices said, “claims against locomotive manufacturers are wholly futile.” In making the decision, the justices cited the Federal Locomotive Boiler Inspection Act, saying it pre-empts state-law tort claims against railroad manufacturers.

They also said trial courts have great discretion in deciding whether to add new defendants to an existing lawsuit. A plaintiff challenging the use of that discretion must show the decision was “unreasonable, arbitrary or unconscionable.”

Disagreeing, one justice said the claims were not in danger of intruding into federal domain because they dealt with products no longer used, not current railroad equipment.

More than 40,000 cases are pending by Ohioans exposed to asbestos.

Mesothelioma — a type of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos — is fairly new and difficult to diagnose and treat. Current treatments are surgical removal of affected tissue, chemotherapy and radiation, depending on the stage of the disease.

But a new type of treatment has been introduced to the mix. Photodynamic therapy uses light to kill cancerous cells after a drug is administered intravenously to target and render the cells more sensitive, says a press release put out by PRWeb.

The drug has no affect on normal cells, so no additional harm will be done. After cells have been properly exposed, a special frequency of light laser beams are directed toward the mesothelioma. Although there have been cases of eye irritability and nausea, side effects have been minimal.

For more information, visit the Mesothelioma Help Web site.

British reinsurer Equitas has agreed to pay $118 million to EnPro Industries Inc. — a manufacturing company based in Charlotte, N.C. — in a dispute over insurance coverage for asbestos-related claims against EnPro, says the Charlotte Business Journal.

About $30 million of the settlement will reimburse EnPro for payments it has already made on asbestos-related claims, and the rest will go into a trust for resolving other asbestos claims.

Several EnPro subsidiaries such as Garlock Sealing Technologies and The Anchor Packing Co. manufactured products containing asbestos, and EnPro has been involved in many lawsuits concerning death and injury as a result.

Lloyd’s of London underwriters hold about $130 million of EnPro’s insurance for such claims, and Equitas reinsures the company. The settlement resolves all of EnPro’s claims against Lloyd’s underwriters.

"Resolution of the dispute brings our insurance reimbursements from Equitas up to date, while establishment of the trust ensures we will continue to receive cash payments of the Equitas portion of our remaining insurance in a timely and efficient manner," says Ernie Schaub, an EnPro chief executive.

The number of deaths from exposure to asbestos has skyrocketed since the late ‘60s and is projected to keep climbing through the next decade due to long-ago exposure to the substances that was widely used for insulation and fireproofing, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The government-funded group determined that in 1968, 77 people died from asbestos, compared with the 1,500 people who died from it in 2000 -- almost a 2,000 percent increase.

Four hundred bicyclists from across the globe took part in the 400-mile Cycling the Erie Canal Tour in mid-July to raise awareness for mesothelioma, a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos, says R News.

The sixth annual ride lasted eight days, beginning in Buffalo, N.Y., and wrapping up in Albany, N.Y.

While there is no known cure for mesothelioma, family members of those suffering from the disease hoped the tour would raise awareness.

“We think of them (the victims) in their best ways, in their best moments,” said Bob Good, who lost his sister and brother-in-law to the disease last year. “Doing some things that are positive and upbeat is a great way to capture the spirit they had, that they gave to everyone they came in contact with.”

Two of the world’s largest providers of products and services to the oil, gas, construction and engineering industries won court approval of a restructuring plan that allots a large chunk of money for asbestos-claims settlements, says Bloomberg.

Halliburton Co.’s DII Industries and Kellogg Brown & Root, which handles the engineering and construction services for Halliburton, were approved for a restructuring plan that includes a $4.2 billion settlement of asbestos claims.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Judith Fitzgerald of Pittsburgh approved the plan, along with the almost 400,000 claimants suing the company.

Most asbestos lawsuits against Halliburton stemmed from its 1998 $6.2 billion purchase of Dresser Industries, which was renamed DII, says Bloomberg.

An Illinois circuit judge facing scrutiny from pro-business and pro-industry groups handed over his docket, asking that his county’s asbestos lawsuits be handled by another judge, according to a recent article in the Belleville News-Democrat.

Nicholas Byron ruled the Madison County Circuit Court that handles the country’s largest asbestos docket for about 10 years. In 2003 alone, he presided over 953 such cases. As a result, Madison County is notorious for its plaintiff-friendly reputation.

In an attempt to end a legislative standoff, Senate Democratic Leader Tom Daschle recently proposed a $141 billion trust fund to compensate victims of asbestos exposure, says Bloomberg.

The proposal includes $42 billion to be paid during the first five years by companies facing asbestos lawsuits and their insurers, and $4 billion from assets of bankruptcy trusts.

“On the key issue of funding, we remain concerned that while it’s a step forward, it is still short of the mark based on the last discussions on projections of future claims,” says Peg Seminario, director of occupational safety for the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Operations.

In April, Democrats blocked a $124 billion Republican plan to fund litigation that has bankrupted more than 70 companies, saying asbestos makers and their insurers should have to contribute at least $30 billion more for workers exposed to asbestos.

Seminario says that while Daschle’s proposal addresses many unresolved issues, she wonders if a deal is possible given “how far apart the parties remain.’

West Palm Beach, Fla., is a hotbed of asbestos legislation, and has come alive recently with talk of potential reform of that legislation.

The Palm Beach Post reports that more than 730,000 asbestos claims costing more than $70 billion have already made their way through Palm Beach County, and some lawyers are only encouraging the free-for-all.

They are advertising at as a safe haven for all wayward — and not so wayward — asbestos claims. Which leads many to believe South Florida needs a dose of legislation reform.

Travelers Property Casualty Corp.’s proposal to pay $500 million to victims of asbestos-related diseases is on its way to becoming a reality after a judge said the settlement amount is acceptable, says Bloomberg News.

If all goes as planned, the the pact would be one of the largest settlements in asbestos-legislation history, the article says. Travelers insured the Johns-Manville Corp. (which no longer exists) for more than 30 years while it produced and sold asbestos.

Thanks to a circuit judge in West Palm Beach, Fla., all asbestos lawsuits have come to a screeching halt. According to the Palm Beach Post, Judge Timothy McCarthy said he would not hear another case until the question of where the lawsuits should be filed is answered. After a “rancorous” two and 1/2 hour hearing on whether to dismiss of transfer 72 asbestos-related claims filed by a Miami law firm on behalf of citizens in Alabama and other parts of Florida.

Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties are sought after filing locations because each has a separate asbestos division and case management system that forces 99 percent of claims into settlements, the article says.