Asbestos Medical Surveillance Evidence

[free_spirit_etc]

I requested information from some of the bases where my husband worked as an electrician in asking for information about their asbestos management plans and occupational medical surveillance programs during the time my husband was working as an electrician.

One base reported that their medical surveillance was not started until 1996. However, the base where my husband was stationed from Sept. 1979 – October 1982 sent me a document that doesn’t specifically reference asbestos screening, but does show that interior electricians had Required Special Purpose Examinations that included Pulmonary Function Tests (FEV1 and FVC) and Chest X-rays every two years. (This correlates with the tests required by OSHA).

This document is dated August 7, 1982. So apparently they started their medical screening programs much earlier than the other base.

Another document dated August 19, 1982 lists the names of the workers who were in the program. Though they blanked at all the names besides my husband’s name – his name is on that list. However, it has a line drawn through his name. Some names have dates written next to them. There is also a notation on the document that says “April 15, 1983.” So this would indicate that whoever wrote the handwritten comments on the document was still noting things as late as April 1983.

So I am not sure whether to use this as evidence that my husband was more likely than not exposed to asbestos.

My thoughts are that they did not get around to screening him before he transferred to Korea in October 1982 – so they crossed his name off the list. But I don’t have any proof of that. The only proof I have is that many bases didn’t have medical surveillance in the 1980’s, that this particular base started their medical surveillance in 1982 (a couple of months before my husband transferred to another base), that interior electricians were included in the surveillance, that my husband’s name was on the list to be included (though it was later crossed off).

I think my husband slipped through the cracks on the medical surveillance because the bases all started the programs at different times, and he stopped working as an electrician in 1983 when he returned from Korea. Actually, if he had been on any base when a medical surveillance program began that had tested him once under that program; they would have continued to monitor him even when he transferred to another job classification.

I think this could still be good evidence, as it shows the job field my husband worked in from 1970 – 1983 was classified as a job that needed to be monitored for asbestos exposure when the programs began. And my husband’s name was specifically on the list of people that needed to be monitored.

However, the fact that his name was crossed off could be used to say he apparently didn’t need monitoring.

I think a “reasonable mind” could see that it was more likely than not he was exposed to asbestos due to his job classification for 13 years. But with his name crossed off that list – someone could try to interpret that another way.

Something that is puzzling though, is that it seems like he should have received a physical before he transferred to Korea, and that he should have triggered the medical surveillance at the time of his physical. I am not sure why he didn’t.

[free_spirit_etc]

So my question is - should I use this as evidence?

[jbasser]

Heck yes use this as evidence.

You may also want to inquire about which Environmental preventive medicine unit the Airforce used to do the actual asbestos identification for the work.

All Branches have these facilities.

J

[free_spirit_etc]

Thanks jbasser!

I was just concerned because his name was crossed off the list. But I think that is because he transferred. It would be highly unlikely that they would have determined that he was the ONLY electrician that didn't need to be tested.

I will check into the preventative medicine unit. That might even be on the asbestos management plans.