Jeff Cuthbert AM voted in favour of the Recovery of Medical Costs for Asbestos Diseases (Wales) Bill last week enabling the Bill to complete the final stages of the legislation process and become law.
Mick Antoniw AM’s Private Members Bill will enable Welsh NHS costs for asbestos victims’ treatment to be recovered from negligent employers or their insurers.
This could result in raising up to £1m a year for the Welsh NHS. The Bill will place an obligation on employers who exposed workers to deadly asbestos, compelling them to reimburse the NHS in Wales for the cost of treating those asbestos victims.
Hundreds of Welsh workers suffer from asbestos related diseases, and exposure to asbestos has caused thousands more deaths over the past decades. Many victims suffer prolonged and often progressive ill health, leading to premature death. It is estimated that the human cost will continue for decades with the peak in mortality not expected until at least 2015.
Jeff Cuthbert AM said: “I am proud to support the Recovery of Medical Costs for Asbestos Diseases (Wales) Bill and stand up for the many victims and their families who have been blighted by this terrible disease.
“It is extremely disappointing that the only party not to vote in favour of the Bill is the Conservatives. The Tories have shown themselves to be the unpleasant party by voting against this Bill. The Conservative Party has decided to join the side of the insurance companies as opposed to the victims and families. I know which side I’m on.”
