Posted on July 1, 2019
Since 2008, the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) has held and/or participated in 13 Congressional Staff Briefings. Every year, we have used this immense opportunity to do one thing: give space for experts to share their work with U.S. lawmakers. Primarily focused on asbestos exposure prevention, we have brought nearly 40 experts together to bring the most cutting-edge, up-to-date information to Senate and House staffers.
During the past decade, an estimated 700 staffers have been educated about asbestos and the impact it has had on their constituents. This goes far beyond mortality rates and imports figures, however. In addition to a briefing package, each staffer is given stories from the ADAO Share Your Story collection, ensuring that victims’ voices are heard. This documentary collection of the journeys of hundreds of Mesothelioma Warriors provides a direct connection for these staffers to the Americans they represent.
ADAO has also made space for victims themselves to reach their representatives. ADAO has twice assembled two distinct “Dream Teams” of Mesothelioma Warriors who shared their personal stories directly to these policymakers’ staffers.
In addition to this, ADAO builds an online staff resource page with our speaker bios, executive summaries, PowerPoints, studies, and other ADAO materials, such as the top 10 asbestos and Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act (ARBAN) facts.
During our educational briefings, we have been able to attack the asbestos issue from all angles. Its complexities reach into the political, economic, environmental, medical, and – of course – the personal, and we have covered each of these over the years.
Education has been monumentally important to ADAO –– it truly is where knowledge and action unite. ADAO remains dedicated to educating both Congress and the public on the lethal impacts of asbestos and importance of a federal ban. I am confident that by working together, we will ban asbestos and keep Americans safe.
As we begin to work on our 14th staff briefing, we continue to work towards a ban on asbestos by educating staffers about the Alan Reinstein Ban Asbestos Now Act. We are excited to educate a bipartisan and bicameral group of staffers in hopes to get their members to sign on in support of our lifesaving bill.
Listed below are the people who have powerfully used their voices to make change happen and briefing links.
June 2010, January 2012, July 2012, July 2013, July 2014, July 2015, February 2016, September 2016, April 2017, September 2017, September 2018
| 2010 (Jun) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2010 (Jun) | Brent Kynoch, Environmental Information Association |
| 2010 (Jun) | Celeste Monforton, DrPH, MPH, Occupational Health & Safety Section, American Public Health Association |
| 2010 (Jun) | Dr. Richard Lemen, Former Assistant Surgeon General, United States (ret) |
| 2010 (Jun) | John Walke, National Resource Defense Council |
| 2010 (Jun) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2010 (Jun) | Paul Zygielbaum, MS, MBA, Business Executive and Mesothelioma Patient |
| 2012 (Jan) | Arthur Frank, MD, PhD, Department of Environmental & Occupational Health, Drexel University School of Public Health |
| 2012 (Jan) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2012 (Jan) | Brent Kynoch, Environmental Information Association |
| 2012 (Jan) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2012 (Jan) | Marilyn Amento, Mesothelioma Widow |
| 2012 (Jul) | Barbara McQueen, Mesothelioma Widow of Steve McQueen |
| 2012 (Jul) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2012 (Jul) | Brent Kynoch, Environmental Information Association |
| 2012 (Jul) | Dr. Richard Lemen, Former Assistant Surgeon General, United States (ret) |
| 2012 (Jul) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2013 (Jul) | Dr. Barry Castleman, Environmental Consultant |
| 2013 (Jul) | Dr. Raja Flores, Chief of Division of Thoracic Surgery, The Mount Sinai Medical Center |
| 2013 (Jul) | Dr. Richard Lemen, Former Assistant Surgeon General, United States (ret) |
| 2013 (Jul) | Ellen Patton, Mesothelioma Patient |
| 2013 (Jul) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2013 (Jul) | Tom Laubenthal, Technical Chief, The Environmental Institute |
| 2014 (Jul) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2014 (Jul) | Christine Oliver, MD, MPH, MS, FACPM |
| 2014 (Jul) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2014 (Jul) | Sandra Neuenschwander, Mesothelioma Victim |
| 2014 (Jul) | Tony Rich, Industrial Hygienist |
| 2015 (Jul) | Ann Samuelson, Mesothelioma Victim (OR) |
| 2015 (Jul) | Heather Von St. James, Mesothelioma Patient (MN) |
| 2015 (Jul) | Jordan Zevon, ADAO National Spokesperson (CA) |
| 2015 (Jul) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2015 (Jul) | Mike Mattmuller, Mesothelioma Patient (MD) |
| 2016 (Feb) | Annamarie Kearns, Mesothelioma Patient (UT) |
| 2016 (Feb) | Heather Von St. James, Mesothelioma Patient (MN) |
| 2016 (Feb) | Julie Gundlach, Mesothelioma Patient (MO) |
| 2016 (Feb) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2016 (Feb) | Marilyn Amento, Mesothelioma Widow (PA) |
| 2016 (Sep) | Andy Igrejas, Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families (SCHF) |
| 2016 (Sep) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2016 (Sep) | Brent Kynoch, Environmental Information Association |
| 2016 (Sep) | Daniel Rosenberg, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) |
| 2016 (Sep) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2016 (Sep) | Mark Catlin, American Public Health Association (APHA) |
| 2016 (Sep) | Mike Mattmuller, Mesothelioma Patient |
| 2017 (Apr) | Carrie McNamara, Asbestos Victim (IA) |
| 2017 (Apr) | Julie Gundlach, Mesothelioma Patient (MO) |
| 2017 (Apr) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2017 (Apr) | Robin Tucker, Asbestos Victim (OH) |
| 2017 (Apr) | Scott Slesigner, Legislative Director, Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) |
| 2017 (Sep) | Andy Igrejas, Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families (SCHF) |
| 2017 (Sep) | Barry Castleman, ScD, Environmental Consultant |
| 2017 (Sep) | Brent Kynoch, Environmental Information Association |
| 2017 (Sep) | Dr. Raja Flores, Chair of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Mt. Sinai Medical Center |
| 2017 (Sep) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2017 (Sep) | Pat Morrison, International Association of Firefighters |
| 2018 (Sep) | Dr. Raja Flores, Chair of the Department of Thoracic Surgery at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine |
| 2018 (Sep) | Linda Reinstein, Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization |
| 2018 (Sep) | Mike Mattmuller, Mesothelioma Patient |
| 2018 (Sep) | Pat Morrison, International Association of Firefighters |
| 2018 (Sep) | Robert Sussman, Former EPA Deputy Administrator and Senior Policy Counsel to the EPA Administrator |
| 2018 (Sep) | Scott Faber, Vice President of Government Affairs, Environmental Working Group |