Makeup Brand Ben Nye Files for Bankruptcy to Avoid Talc Lawsuits
Professional makeup brand Ben Nye, popular with film, stage and modeling makeup artists, has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the midst of lawsuits. The suits claim its products contain asbestos-contaminated talc. The move could allow the company to reorganize while putting its many talc lawsuits on hold.
The company says it stopped using talc in its face powders in January 2024, but talc is still being used in other products. Ben Nye’s talc suppliers claim they conducted an analysis and no asbestos was ever found in the talc they provided to the company.
According to a March 11, 2024 bankruptcy fili...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - May 6, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Companies Lawsuit Legal Mesothelioma Product talc Talcum Powder Source Type: news
ADAO Webinar Recap: Firefighting and Legacy Asbestos
The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization held a webinar this week highlighting the need for a total asbestos ban and the dangers of legacy asbestos, which is found in older buildings, schools and homes. ADAO Co-Founder Linda Reinstein led the webinar and introduced the panelists of experts.
Dr. Raja Flores, Dr. Dan Whu and Greg Russell with the International Association of Fire Fighters, Brent Kynoch from the Environmental Information Association, ADAO counsel Bob Sussman and Reinstein discussed the need to combat misinformation and raise awareness about the presence of asbestos. They noted many people may not ...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - May 3, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Clinical Trials/Research/Emerging Treatments Doctors/Specialists Mesothelioma Support/Support Groups/Organizations Source Type: news
Federal Jury Says BNSF Railway Played a Part in Libby Deaths
A federal jury’s verdict in favor of the plaintiff in a wrongful death lawsuit finds BNSF Railway contributed to the deaths of Thomas Wells and Joyce Walder. Jurors agreed with the plaintiff’s argument that asbestos-contaminated vermiculite in the railyard was a considerable factor in these deaths.
The estates of Wells and Walder filed the wrongful death lawsuit in 2021. Both Wells and Walder lived near the railyard and were both diagnosed with mesothelioma and died in 2020. Compensatory damages of $4 million each will be awarded to their estates.
The plaintiffs argued BNSF knew that vermiculite contaminated with...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - May 1, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Companies Legal Mesothelioma Source Type: news
J & J Ordered to Pay $45M in Talc Baby Powder Lawsuit
An Illinois jury’s verdict orders defendants Johnson & Johnson and Kenvue to pay $45 million to the family of a woman who died of mesothelioma. The plaintiffs in the case were the family of Theresa Garcia whose lawsuit claimed J&J’s talc-based baby powder was tainted with asbestos.
The jury found Kenvue 70% responsible for Garcia’s death and J&J for 30%. Kenvue is a former consumer healthcare division of J&J and became a fully independent company in August 2023.
Theresa Garcia died only 6 months after receiving her mesothelioma diagnosis. Her family says she frequently used J&J’s tal...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - April 29, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Lynette Zilio Tags: Asbestos Exposure Companies johnson Legal Mesothelioma talc Talcum Powder Verdict Source Type: news
Dutch Company Claims Asbestos Removal from Building Materials
Asbester, a company in the Netherlands, claims it can convert asbestos-containing products into non-hazardous construction materials. Located in Rotterdam, Asbester aims to permanently eliminate the harmful global waste problem of asbestos from ending up in landfills.
Using a unique denaturing process, large sheets of asbestos cement are drenched in water, heated, shredded and then turned into a slurry. Asbester says these steps dissolve dangerous asbestos fibers, removing the toxic mineral and allowing the material to be repurposed as calcium silicate hydrate for use in concrete mixtures for construction projects or in...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - April 15, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Clinical Trials/Research/Emerging Treatments Mesothelioma Source Type: news
Trial Underway Against Warren Buffett ’s Railway Company
A trial has begun over BNSF Railway’s transporting of asbestos-contaminated vermiculite from mines in Libby, Montana that closed in 1990. Investor and businessman Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. purchased the railway in 2010. BNSF is accused of negligence and wrongful death.
The suit claims the railway is responsible for failing to control asbestos-contaminated dust from Libby vermiculite stored in a downtown railyard and then transported through the town to manufacturing plants across the country. BNSF denies any responsibility for asbestos contamination of Libby, according to court filings.
The e...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - April 12, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Asbestosis Companies Lawsuit Legal Mesothelioma Source Type: news
J & J Begins Another Trial Over Claims Its Talc Causes Cancer
Phil and Bernard Matthey’s wrongful death lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson has headed to trial. The suit claims the company is responsible for selling asbestos-contaminated baby powder that caused the death of the plaintiffs’ mother. Patricia Matthey died from ovarian cancer at the age of 72 In 2019. The Mattheys’ lawsuit notes their mother had used J&J’s talc-based product for most of her life.
Attorney for the plaintiffs, Lance Oliver, told the jury that Patricia Matthey applied baby powder to her body 41,000 times over the course of 50 years. He also told the jury that J&J continued sel...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - April 5, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Companies johnson Legal Mesothelioma talc Talcum Powder Source Type: news
Philadelphia Teacher Sues District Over Asbestos-Related Cancer
Juan Namnun, an award-winning health and physical education teacher at Frankford High School in Philadelphia, was diagnosed with papillary carcinoma in 2022. His diagnosis led him to file a lawsuit against The School District of Philadelphia.
Papillary carcinoma is a rare type of breast cancer. Following his diagnosis, Namnum underwent a double mastectomy, reconstructive surgery and chemotherapy.
Namnum’s lawsuit claims his diagnosis is “a direct and proximate result of [his] repeated exposure to and inhalation of excessive amounts of asbestos fibers and dust at Frankford High school over a period of mu...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - April 1, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Cancer (Non-Meso) Source Type: news
Photos Expose Hazardous Visits to Asbestos Town Continue
Recent photos document what appears to be an unauthorized visit to a former asbestos mining town. The Facebook photos show Dale Hawkins exploring old mine shafts in Wittenoom, Australia where toxic blue asbestos was mined several decades ago. Hawkins claims the pictures were from a trip in 2021, before it was officially illegal to enter the town.
Hawkins’ first-person perspective images show ghost-town remains of the western Australia town about 880 miles north of Perth. The contamination was so severe, Wittenoom was removed from maps and road signs in an attempt to keep people away.
The Western Austral...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 19, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure International Mesothelioma Source Type: news
Biden Administration Finalizes Chrysotile Asbestos Ban
Joining 50 other countries that have already banned asbestos, the United States is now banning chrysotile asbestos. The Biden administration has officially finalized the ban that follows decades of calls from survivors of asbestos-related diseases, medical professionals, veterans and first responders.
Chrysotile asbestos, also known as white asbestos, continues to be imported into the U.S., particularly for use in the chloralkali industry. Anticipating a ban, imports of asbestos rose dramatically in 2022 from 100 metric tons in all of 2021 to 114 metric tons in just the first 3 months of 2022, according to the U.S. Inte...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 18, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Companies Legal Support/Support Groups/Organizations Source Type: news
Companies Fined $825K for Improper Asbestos Handling
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell is imposing fines totaling $825,000 against several companies for improper handling, disposal and removal of materials containing asbestos. Since 2016, the AG’s Office has imposed more than $7.7 million in civil penalties.
Among those included in recent consent judgments are the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in Plymouth, a redevelopment site in Lowell and a residential development project in the Mission Hill neighborhood of the City of Boston. The Worcester County Sheriff’s Office also found itself the subject of an AGO case over requiring employees to demolish asbe...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 15, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Companies Legal Mesothelioma Product Source Type: news
VA Benefits Now Available to Millions of Veterans
VA health care benefits are now available to millions more veterans in one of the largest expansions of coverage in the U.S. The inclusion of significantly more veterans compared to past bills comes at the direction of President Joe Biden.
Veterans Who Now Qualify
Veterans of the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Global War on Terror or any other combat zone after 9/11.
Service members who were exposed to any toxins or other hazards during service at home or abroad.
Those who were never deployed but were exposed while training or on active duty in the U.S.
Benefits cover exposure to asbesto...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 13, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Cancer Center Doctors/Specialists Treatment Veterans Source Type: news
FL Jury Fails to Agree on J & J Talc Verdict
Bob Sugarman sued Johnson & Johnson, claiming the company’s talc products caused the death of his wife, Marilyn Seskin, MD. The case has ended in a mistrial after the jury was unable to agree on a verdict.
The jury note the judge read aloud in court stated: “We are hopelessly deadlocked with absolutely, positively no way to resolve it.”
The closely watched trial was held in Florida’s Circuit Court for the 11th Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade County. It was the first talc powder trial against J&J in 3 years after litigation had been paused during the company’s failed bankruptcy proceedings...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 11, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos Exposure Companies johnson Lawsuit Legal talc Talcum Powder Verdict Source Type: news
FL Senate Approves Bill Requiring Form for Asbestos Lawsuits
The Florida Senate voted to approve Republican Senator Travis Hutson’s proposed SB 720 requiring courts to dismiss asbestos claims without a completed information form. The bill’s next stop is the Florida House of Representatives.
If the House approves the measure, it would then go before the governor. If signed into law, those with asbestos-related diseases will have to provide more extensive information when filing a lawsuit.
SB 720 has the backing of businesses. Lobbying groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Florida Insurance Council also support the measure.
However, veterans groups a...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 11, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Travis Rodgers Tags: Asbestos (general) Asbestos Exposure Asbestosis Cancer (Non-Meso) Florida Legal Lawsuit Mesothelioma Source Type: news
Report: Majority of Federal Buildings Miss Asbestos Inspections
The Government Accountability Office reports 66.7% of all U.S. federal buildings miss their routine 5-year asbestos inspections and 52% haven’t been inspected in more than 10 years. The General Services Administration requires all federal buildings built before 1998 be inspected for asbestos at least once every 5 years.
GSA blames a lack of funding, staff shortages, database limitations and incomplete records for the lack of recent asbestos checks. The agency is requesting $500,000 for the fiscal year 2024 to fund inspections. It’s also considering changing the inspection rule from every 5 years to every 10 ye...
Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News - March 10, 2024 Category: Environmental Health Authors: Amy Edel Tags: Asbestos (general) Source Type: news
