III 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. RES. 462 

Designating the first week of April 2008 as ‘‘National Asbestos Awareness 

Week’’. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2008 

Mr. BAUCUS (for himself, Mr. REID, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. TESTER, Mrs. MURRAY, 

Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, and Mr. KENNEDY) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 

the Judiciary 

MARCH 5, 2008 

Committee discharged; considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Designating the first week of April 2008 as ‘‘National 

Asbestos Awareness Week’’. 

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; 


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SRES 462 ATS 

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 

2,000 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 mesotheVerDate Aug 31 2005 00:41 Mar 06, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\SR462.ATS SR462

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SRES 462 ATS 

lioma 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 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) designates the first week of April 2008 as 

3 ‘‘National Asbestos Awareness Week’’; 

4 (2) urges the Surgeon General, as a public 

5 health issue, to warn and educate people that asbes6 tos exposure may be hazardous to their health; and 

7 (3) respectfully requests the Secretary of the 

8 Senate to transmit a copy of this resolution to the 

9 Surgeon General. 

Æ 


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