Rapid support for asbestos victims

All persons suffering from an asbestos-related malignant tumor in the abdominal and thoracic region (mesothelioma) from 2006 onwards should be able to receive financial support - regardless of whether it is a recognized occupational disease. Representatives of asbestos victims, former asbestos-producing and processing companies, trade unions and industry agreed on this principle at a round table. This was established in 2015.

The scope of financial support in individual cases is based on the benefits paid by the compulsory accident insurance (UVG) to patients with a recognized asbestos-related occupational disease. Benefits are also provided for UVG-insured persons. This is to ensure that persons not insured under the UVG and patients insured under the UVG are supported in the same way.

Financing of the fund is secured for a first phase
In return, those who receive a payment from the fund waive their right to assert civil claims. The Round Table also wants lawsuits that are already pending to be settled out of court.

The fund is expected to require around 100 million Swiss francs for a period up to 2025. The Round Table has already received commitments for contributions of around 30 million Swiss francs from joint professional committees, the asbestos processing industry, the insurance industry and railroad companies. These pledges are voluntary and in some cases conditional on the commitment of other players. For the years after 2025, the management of the new foundation to be established will, if necessary, look for a successor solution in good time.

Establishment of a "care service" for the affected persons
In addition, a free "care service" is to be set up for all those affected, in cooperation with existing institutions. Although sufferers receive good medical care today, they and their relatives often receive too little psychological support. The offer can also be taken up by people who have been exposed to asbestos at an earlier stage and are therefore afraid of contracting mesothelioma. Regional lung leagues are in the process of developing pilot projects in German- and French-speaking Switzerland. These services are also to be financed at least in part from the fund.

Foundation to ensure support for those affected by asbestos
On the recommendation of the Round Table, the private-law Foundation for Asbestos Victims will be set up in the next few weeks, which will examine the applications of asbestos victims and provide financial as well as psychological support. In addition, the foundation board will have the task of persuading other business sectors to voluntarily co-finance the fund. Urs Berger, President of the Swiss Insurance Association, is envisaged as Chairman of the Foundation Board. The foundation board is to be composed of representatives of those associations and companies that provide financial resources for the fund, as well as representatives of asbestos victims and trade unions.

About 120 new mesothelioma cases per year
Every year, around 120 people in Switzerland contract mesothelioma because they inhaled a carcinogenic amount of asbestos fibers at an earlier stage. Around 30 of them do not receive benefits from the compulsory accident insurance because their illness is not work-related. They are usually worse off financially than those insured under the UVG.

Asbestos was processed in various building materials, especially in the 1960s and 1970s of the last century, and was widely used in construction as well as in industry and technology. In 1989, a general ban on asbestos came into force, which has prohibited the use of products and objects containing asbestos since 1990. Various federal offices, the cantonal specialist agencies, Suva, the employers' associations and the trade unions have also been working closely together for years to warn and protect the population against asbestos exposure that is hazardous to health. Prevention work is important because asbestos is still present in many older buildings. If asbestos is suspected, specialists must be consulted before any conversion or renovation work is started in order to prevent exposure to asbestos, which can trigger new diseases.

Ongoing legislative work
Persons injured by asbestos and their relatives can claim damages and satisfaction under civil law from companies and persons they hold responsible for their disease. However, under current law, such claims become time-barred at the latest ten years after the end of the harmful influence and thus usually long before the disease breaks out. A revision of the statute of limitations law, which would also revise the statute of limitations for late damage - such as that caused by asbestos fibers - is currently pending in parliament, but has been suspended in view of the results of the Round Table. According to the Round Table's presentation, the Fund's envisaged payments to asbestos victims and their relatives can make an important contribution to Parliament's now being able to find an appropriate solution to this problem.

Source: EDI/BAG