purpose of providing payments to claimants under this Act.
The Administrator shall appoint the Trustee of the Asbestos
Compensation Fund and may remove the Trustee for good
cause.
(e) OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGES.—There
is established in the OAC an Office of Administrative Law
Judges for the purpose of providing expedited administra-
tive adjudication of asbestos claims pursuant to section 105.
The Administrator shall have authority to appoint Admin-
istrative Law Judges on a temporary or emergency basis
and to remove such judges for good cause.
(f) MEDICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The Adminis-
trator shall appoint a Medical Advisory Committee which
shall periodically evaluate this Act’s medical review process
and medical eligibility criteria. The Administrator shall set
a term of appointment for members of the Medical Advisory
Committee. The Committee shall make appropriate rec-
ommendations as and when it deems appropriate and shall
submit an annual report to the Administrator and the Con-
gress.
SEC. 102. MEDICAL ELIGIBILITY REVIEW.
(a) DETERMINATION
OF ELIGIBILITY.—All claims
when filed shall be immediately referred to the Medical Di-
rector. The Medical Director shall determine whether the
claimant meets the requirements for medical eligibility in
section 301 or the requirements for medical testing reim-
bursement in section 306
(b) INFORMATION FOR MEDICAL REVIEW.—The Ad-
ministrator shall issue rules for the expeditious conduct of
the medical review process. Such rules at a minimum shall
provide for the following:
(1) Submission of the following information
where relevant and feasible: smoking history; occupa-
tional history; description of the circumstances, inten-
sity, time, and duration of exposure; medical test re-
sults necessary for a decision as to whether an ex-
posed person meets the requirements for one or more
medically eligible categories under sections 301, 302,
303, 304, 305, or 306, including all of the supporting
data for any pulmonary function tests on which the
claimant relies (including all flow volume loops,
spirographs, and any other tracings for any test that
is performed). The claimant shall also provide such
medical releases as the Administrator may require al-
lowing the OAC to obtain any and all medical infor-
mation relevant to the determination of medical eligi-
bility.
(2) The Medical Director may require additional
non-invasive medical tests at the expense of the OAC
if necessary for a determination of medical eligibility.
(c) PROCEDURES.—Upon receipt of a complete med-
ical application, the Medical Director shall send notice to
the claimant confirming the OAC’s receipt of the claim. The
Medical Director shall make an initial decision within 30
days of such receipt. If the application is initially denied,
the claimant shall be so notified and, at the claimant’s re-
quest, the application shall be immediately referred to—
(1) a review panel of 2 qualified physicians,
with a third qualified physician available to resolve
any disagreement between the initial 2 qualified phy-
sicians; or
(2) an exceptional medical claims panel.
The Medical Director shall be bound by a panel’s decision.
The rules shall also provide for the prioritization of claims,
including enhanced priority for claimants who have meso-
thelioma, and set a time limit for a determination by the
review panel.
(d) EXCEPTIONAL MEDICAL CLAIMS.—The rules of the
medical review process shall provide the claimant with an
opportunity to apply to an exceptional medical claims
panel for a determination of whether the exposed person
meets the requirements under section 301(b) for an excep-
tional medical claim for any category. This opportunity
shall be provided both at the initial filing of a claim and
after a claim has been denied under this subsection. The
exceptional medical claims panel shall decide whether the
claimant qualifies as an exceptional medical claim within
30 days of receipt of the claim. This time limit may be
extended by the Administrator only for good cause. The
Medical Director shall be bound by the decision of the excep-
tional medical claims panel. The Medical Director shall
issue a final denial, along with a brief statement of reasons,
if the claimant is found ineligible following an opportunity
to submit the claim to a medical review panel and an excep-
tional medical claims panel.
(e) MONITORING ACCURACY OF DETERMINATIONS.—
The Medical Director shall establish audit and personnel
review procedures for evaluating the accuracy of medical
eligibility determinations, including both erroneous approv-
als and erroneous denials.
(f) OPT-OUT.—After receiving a certificate of eligi-
bility, a claimant may opt out of settlement proceedings
provided for under sections 103 and 104 and elect to file
suit in any State or Federal court of competent jurisdiction.
SEC. 103. ELECTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS; SET-
TLEMENT OFFERS.
(a) NAMING AND NOTIFICATION OF DEFENDANTS.—
Medically eligible claimants, other than those who elect to
file suit in court under section 102(f), shall name defend-
ants. Defendants shall receive notice from the Adminis-
trator.
(1) IDENTIFICATION
OF
DEFENDANTS
ASSOCI-
ATED WITH WORK SITES.—At the claimant’s request,
the Administrator will provide information con-
cerning person who may have provided asbestos or as-
bestos-containing products or materials to work sites
named by the claimant and when such asbestos or as-
bestos-containing products or materials may have
been provided as well as the time such products or
materials were located at the named work sites The
Administrator 
may 
implement 
this 
paragraph
through rulemaking.
(2) VERIFIED
PARTICULARIZED
STATEMENT.—
Within such time after receiving a certificate of med-
ical eligibility as may be provided by rule, a claim-
ant shall provide, with respect to each person that the
claimant alleges is responsible for the injury claimed,
a verified particularized statement of the basis for the
allegation that the person is or may be responsible for
the injury. The particularized statement shall include
such information as the Administrator may require
for the purpose of providing the defendant with a rea-
sonable basis for making an offer of settlement. The
claimant may incorporate by reference any informa-
tion required by this paragraph that may already
have been submitted to the OAC.
(3) NOTICE.—Upon finding that the claimant’s
particularized statement meets the requirements of
paragraph (2), the Administrator shall provide notice
to each named defendant. The defendant shall at the
same time be furnished with a copy of all particular-
ized statements submitted by the claimant under
paragraph (2) and, subject to reasonable rules pro-
tecting the confidentiality of information provided by
the claimant, a copy of all information submitted by
the claimant, records and other information obtained
by the Medical Director relating to the claim and the
results of any medical tests administered at the direc-
tion of the Medical Director. Any defendant may pro-
vide any information relevant to the amount of any
recommended settlement under subsection (b), includ-
ing information regarding product identification, ex-
posure, and damages.
(4) THIRD-PARTY
PRACTICE.—Defendants may
assert third-party claims in accordance with rules
adopted by the Administrator. Third-party claimants
shall provide a verified particularized statement,
meeting the requirements of paragraph (2), substan-
tiating the allegation that the third-party defendant