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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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Majority
Leader Bill DeWeese |
  
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Black lung benefits increase passes House
HARRISBURG, Oct. 6 – Legislation to increase black lung benefits for retired coal miners unanimously passed the House today, according to co-sponsor state Rep. Bill DeWeese.
"Thousands of former coal miners die each year from coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, more commonly known as black lung disease. In Pennsylvania, approximately 90 miners die each year from this horrific disease," said DeWeese, D-Greene/Fayette/Washington. "Though some may view black lung disease as a relic of a bygone era, it is still a serious problem for thousands of miners, former miners and miner families in Pennsylvania and nationwide."
House Bill 2275 would amend the Pennsylvania Occupational Disease Act to increase the monthly payment to $175 from $125. The current monthly amount was set in 1979, a hike from the $100 established in 1965.
"Black lung continues to be a grave occupational risk in our Commonwealth and other mining states which serve as the backbone of energy production for the United States. Unlike highly publicized mining accidents, black lung disease is a hidden disaster. Afflicted miners die an agonizing death away from the spotlight. A modest increase in the benefits provided to these men and women is long overdue and this additional compensation will provide valuable assistance to the recipients and their families," DeWeese said.
The measure awaits action by the state Senate.
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