Coal Miners To Demand Congress Restore Full Black Lung Benefits Tax
Dozens of coal miners are expected on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, where they'll press federal regulators and members of Congress to address the epidemic of deadly progressive massive fibrosis, the advanced stage of black lung disease.
They'll ask lawmakers to fully restore a coal excise tax that pays for medical care and some living expenses for miners diagnosed with black lung, a crippling disease caused by the inhalation of coal and silica dust. The tax was cut more than 50% at the end of last year. It supports the federal Black Lung Disability Trust Fund, which is more than $4 billion in debt.
The presence of the miners in Washington, some of whom will be dragging oxygen tanks and struggling to talk and breathe, could put more pressure on the Mine Safety and Health Administration, which has resisted direct and quick responses to the epidemic and silica dust exposure.
As , MSHA and the mining industry failed to respond to clear agency data showing three decades of overexposure to toxic silica dust. They also failed to respond to warnings, but the process could take years.
