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<p>There are already compensation schemes for asbestos-related health problems caused
by an individual’s work place environment.</p><p> </p><ul><li>The Pneumoconiosis etc.
(Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979 (1979 Act Scheme) provides lump sum compensation
payments to people who contract, through work, one of five dust-related diseases but
who cannot claim civil damages from their employer through the courts. The dust-related
diseases that are covered, of which most are directly related to asbestos exposure,
are: diffuse mesothelioma; pneumoconiosis (including asbestosis, silicosis and kaolinosis);
byssinosis; diffuse pleural thickening and lung cancer if accompanied by asbestosis
or diffuse pleural thickening.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Whilst the Scheme ensures that
sufferers receive compensation whilst they, themselves, can still benefit from it,
the Scheme is also open to dependants where a sufferer has not been able to make a
claim before they die. Dependants are paid a lower amount than that for someone who
actually has the disease.</p><p> </p><p>There are no plans to extend eligibility to
this Scheme.</p><p> </p><ul><li>The Mesothelioma Act 2014 established the Diffuse
Mesothelioma Payment Scheme (DMPS). The DMPS makes lump sum payments to people who
contract diffuse mesothelioma from negligent exposure to asbestos in the workplace,
but are unable to pursue a civil claim because their former employer no longer exists
and their former employer’s insurer cannot be traced. The DMPS is funded by a levy
paid by insurers who are active in the Employer’s Liability insurance market.</li></ul><p><br>This
Scheme makes payments to eligible sufferers of diffuse mesothelioma only. Diffuse
mesothelioma is always fatal and always caused by asbestos, therefore, a simple and
straightforward payment scheme can be put in place. Other asbestos-related diseases
have more uncertainties regarding cause, severity and aggravation by other factors
and this complexity is not compatible with a straightforward tariff-based scheme such
as the DMPS.</p><p>There are no plans to extend eligibility to the DMPS.</p>
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