The Minnesota House of Representatives’ Higher Education and Work Force Development Committee has passed a bill to fund a study to discover the cause of 58 known cases of mesothelioma–a rare cancer of the lung lining attributed to asbestos exposure–among taconite mine workers of Minnesota’s Iron Range. The bill would grant $4.9 million to the University of Minnesota to conduct the study, to be paid for by the state Workers Compensation Fund. Studies of the health of Iron Range miners were attempted in the 1970s and the 1990s, but were not completed because of funding cuts. The bill must pass another committee before going to a vote on the House floor. The Senate has not yet considered the bill.
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