New York Times Editorial on Black Lung: “Miners Battle Black Lung, and Bureaucracy”
Today the New York Times printed an editorial written by the Times’s Editorial Board about black lung and current issues facing miners and their families struggling…
NIOSH Expands Coal Workers’ Health Evaluation Program
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is expanding its national program of health surveillance for coal miners. In accordance with the Mine Safety and…
Sixth Circuit Affirms Widow’s Automatic Entitlement to Benefits Despite Previous Denial (Peabody Coal Co. v. Director, OWCP [Hill])
In a short, unpublished decision (decision here), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed a widow’s award of black lung benefits under the…
Sixth Circuit Affirms Surface Miner’s Award of Benefits, Applying 2013 Amendments to Regs (Central Ohio Coal Co. v. Director, OWCP [Sterling])
Today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a published decision (available here) which clarifies that surface miners with pending black lung benefits…
NIOSH Study Finds Coal Miners at Small Mines More Likely to Have Black Lung
In 1998, the Louisville Courier-Journal ran “Dust, Deception and Death,” a five-part investigation into the shocking prevalence of black lung in the mining industry. One story…
National Black Lung Association and Black Lung Clinics Support New Dust Rule
Yesterday the National Black Lung Association and the National Coalition of Black Lung and Respiratory Disease Clinics announced their support of the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s…
Sixth Circuit Holds “Minor” Contribution of Coal-Mine Dust to Lung Disease Can Prove Pneumoconiosis But Disability Causation Uses a Different Standard (Arch on the Green, Inc. v. Groves)
Today the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued a published decision that turns upon the different legal standards used to determine whether a…
Black Lung News Roundup Following July 22 Senate Hearing
The past week saw a lot of news coverage of black lung issues following the Senate hearing on Tuesday July 22nd (see previous post). In attendance…
Congressional Hearing on “How Unethical Legal and Medical Practices Stack the Deck Against Black Lung Claimants”
This morning beginning at 9:45 a.m., a congressional hearing is being held on “How Unethical Legal and Medical Practices Stack the Deck Against Black Lung Claimants.” …
Majority of Miners and Widows Not Represented Before Benefits Review Board in June 2014
In June 2014, most miners and widows were unrepresented before the Department of Labor’s Benefits Review Board (the Department’s appellate body which reviews the decisions of…