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Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization eNewsletter |  |
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The U.S. House of Representatives will hold a hearing on February, 28 to discuss asbestos.
If you haven't already done so, please register now for our Asbestos Awareness Day Conference, to be held on March 28 - 30, 2008, in Detroit. Our goal is to provide the most advanced medical, occupational and environmental information available about asbestos related disease to individuals throughout the world. To register for the conference; or learn how to place a memorial or honor tribute in the conference program; or to learn about how your firm can place a client tribute in the program Keynote speaker Peter Orris, MD, MPH, serves as Professor and Associate Director of the Great Lakes Center for Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health of the University Of Illinois School Of Public Health (a World Health Organization Collaborating Center) and is the Director of its Occupational Health Service Institute and Global Toxics Policy Program. He maintains an active clinical and teaching practice in Occupational Medicine and is the chief of the clinical department at the University of Illinois Medical Center. Additional speakers include: Dr. Brad Black, Dr. Jim Brophy, Dr. Barry Castleman, Dr. Rebecca Cline, Dr. Bishakha Ghose, Head, Department of Community Medicine BGC Trust Medical College Chandanaish Chittagong, Thailand, Dr. Michael Harbut, Lyle Hargrove, Robert Jones, Environmental Researcher - Rhodes University, Laurie Kazan-Allen, Dr. Richard Lemen, Pat Martin, Dr. Aubrey Miller, Linda Reinstein, Dr. John C. Ruckdeschel, John Thayer, Jordan Zevon, and Paul Zygielbaum. This fourth annual conference is made possible with the generous support and collaborative efforts from Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute and the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS). We thank them all.
ADAO's product testing program has made a splash on CNN and in newspapers coast to coast. For example, in a story that originally aired on December 18, CNN's Greg Hunter reported: "Linda Reinstein's husband... died from asbestos exposure. His death led Reinstein to form the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization... The Environmental Protection Agency banned asbestos in 1989, but the ban was overturned by a federal appeals court two years later." To view the CNN asbestos segments featuring ADAO, click here On November 28, ADAO announced the results of its laboratory tests on a variety of common household products and toys. This resulted in an eye-opening story broken by Andrew Schneider of the Seattle Post Intelligencer. Meanwhile, consumer protection officials in Connecticut halted the sale of the "CSI fingerprint examination kit" in the state on December 20 after tests requested by the state revealed the fingerprint dust in the kit contains asbestos. Connecticut embargoed the sale of the kits. To date, ADAO has spent some $165,000 to pay for independent laboratory testing of children's toys and other household products. Thank you for supporting our vital work to educate Americans about asbestos dangers and keep our kids and families safe.
By Paul Ziegelbaum The focus of efforts to ban asbestos in America is moving from the US Senate to the House of Representatives, as a House committee prepares to hold hearings on a bill that is a companion to the one recently passed by the Senate. Hearings are expected to begin sometime within the next several weeks. Last October, the US Senate approved a version of the "Ban Asbestos in America Act of 2007" that had been substantially modified from the version that many advocacy groups, including ADAO, had supported. Passage of the bill by unanimous vote of the Senate was initially hailed by many advocacy groups that were later stunned to learn that the bill had been modified from the version they'd seen before the vote. Senate staffers cited misunderstandings and missed communication links for the surprise. Rather than banning all products containing asbestos, whether as an ingredient or as a contaminant, the revised Senate bill would ban only "asbestos containing materials," which have a legal definition that generally allows asbestos content up to 1% by weight. The revised bill also calls for studies of the state of scientific knowledge about the hazards of asbestos, a provision sought by industry sources. The bill omits provisions in the earlier draft that would have mandated government testing of products for asbestos content. The House version, HR 3285, is based on the earlier version of the bill first introduced into the Senate by Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA). ADAO had advised Senate staffers as to ways in which the ban could be made more effective through changes in the bill's language, resulting in substantial changes to the original draft, but these changes were eliminated as part of the Senate compromise. ADAO intends to offer similar advice to the House as it considers its version of the bill. To read the full story -- Click here
Paul S. Zygielbaum, ADAO Product Testing Project Manager On November 28, ADAO held a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, to present the first results of its tests of household consumer products for asbestos content. The event was well covered by US and Canadian news media, resulting in a flurry of news stories, reactions from industry and consumers, and government action. The presentation was moderated by Doug Larkin, ADAO co-founder, and by Linda Reinstein, ADAO Executive Director and co-founder. Information on the testing and results was presented by Sean Fitzgerald, president of Scientific Analytical Institute, Inc. (SAI), an independent testing laboratory in Greensboro, NC. SAI had performed product testing and had managed confirmation testing subcontracted to two other independent laboratories as part of the project protocol. Following Fitzgerald's presentation was a discussion of medical implications by Dr. Michael Harbut of the Karmanos Cancer Center in Detroit, MI, who appeared via video link from his clinic. Five specific products were shown to the press, along with the test results revealing their asbestos content, as confirmed by all three laboratories. These products included:
ADAO observed stringent scientific standards in only reporting the five triple-confirmations at the press conference. However, concurrent with the press conference and out of concern for public safety, ADAO sent a full report on the project results, citing all 18 products tested positive by SAI, to the heads of the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. To read the full story Click here
Thanks to Jones House Music, the Maverick Saloon in Santa Ynez, California, was packed with fans of the late singer/songwriter Warren Zevon on December 8. ADAO raised over $18,000 to benefit both MARF and ADAO for asbestos disease, including mesothelioma, the disease that took Warren's life in 2003. The evening's performers included Rock and Roll Hall of Fame guitarist Mike Campbell and his band The Dirty Knobs. Campbell appeared on several of Zevon's albums, including his final release, "The Wind," which Warren recorded during his illness and released just weeks before his untimely death. Additional performers included Kenny Edwards, co-founder of The Stone Poneys, and Matt Cartsonis, who has written multiple scores for film, television, and commercials. Rounding out the evening is Warren's son, New West Recording artist Jordan Zevon who is also the National Spokesperson for ADAO. We gratefully acknowledge the following sponsors, whose exceptionally generous donations support education and research for a cure:
GoodSearch is a search engine which donates 50-percent of its revenue to the charities and schools designated by its users. It's a simple and compelling concept. You use GoodSearch exactly as you would any other search engine. Because it's powered by Yahoo!, you get proven search results. The money GoodSearch donates to your cause comes from its advertisers - the users and the organizations do not spend a dime! In 2007, GoodSearch was expanded to include GoodShop, an online shopping mall of world-class merchants dedicated to helping fund worthy causes across the country. Each purchase made via the GoodShop mall results in a donation to the user's designated charity or school - averaging approximately 3% of the sale, but going up to 20% or even more. Ken and JJ Ramberg wanted to create a means to support charities so that people would say, "Why wouldn't you do it?" That's what GoodSearch does. Since it doesn't cost anything and you get proven search results, there's no reason not to use it! GoodSearch is dedicated to Ken and JJ's mother, who passed away from cancer and who taught them both that by working together with dogged dedication, we can really make this world a better place. WHO DO YOU GOODSEARCH FOR: ADAO http://www.goodsearch.com
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