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rdean
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In coal country, some worry Trump will take away black lung benefits
Again and again, President-elect Donald Trump presented himself as the coal miners’ candidate.
That’s because buried in the Affordable Care Act are three sentences that made it much easier to access these benefits. If Trump repeals Obamacare — as he vowed to do before the election — and does not keep that section on the books, the miners will be back to where they were in 2009, when it was exceedingly difficult to be awarded compensation for “black lung” disease.
“The vast majority of people were denied benefits. People would take these cases through the black lung court system and they would be denied because the companies could sow the shadow of a seed of a doubt.”
These changes in the Affordable Care Act not only meant that Arvis Toler ended up being awarded benefits shortly before he died in 2015, but also that his 70-year-old widow, Sue, has continued to receive compensation every month.
The coal industry opposes these rules.
Even so, many coal miners and their advocates are concerned that their fates are tied to a piece of legislation that has, in a certain sense, just lost an election, especially in coal-producing states such as Kentucky and West Virginia. Lawyers working on this issue are worried that repeal of the ACA could mean no compensation for new claimants and the potential loss of benefits for anyone who won them since the law passed.
“I want to make sure that coal country doesn’t assume that they are going to be taken care of just because a lot of our political leaders have voiced support for our region,” he said. “I wish I could be more optimistic that they truly would keep their promise.”
The uncertainty about these benefits is even more worrisome to her because of evidence showing an increase in both the prevalence and severity of black lung cases
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“I wish I could be more optimistic that they truly would keep their promise.”
Hello, we are talking about Republicans. You know, "Let him die". These coal people are totally fucked. And the comments below the article. Sad.
The GOP base always voting against their own self interests.
Again and again, President-elect Donald Trump presented himself as the coal miners’ candidate.
That’s because buried in the Affordable Care Act are three sentences that made it much easier to access these benefits. If Trump repeals Obamacare — as he vowed to do before the election — and does not keep that section on the books, the miners will be back to where they were in 2009, when it was exceedingly difficult to be awarded compensation for “black lung” disease.
“The vast majority of people were denied benefits. People would take these cases through the black lung court system and they would be denied because the companies could sow the shadow of a seed of a doubt.”
These changes in the Affordable Care Act not only meant that Arvis Toler ended up being awarded benefits shortly before he died in 2015, but also that his 70-year-old widow, Sue, has continued to receive compensation every month.
The coal industry opposes these rules.
Even so, many coal miners and their advocates are concerned that their fates are tied to a piece of legislation that has, in a certain sense, just lost an election, especially in coal-producing states such as Kentucky and West Virginia. Lawyers working on this issue are worried that repeal of the ACA could mean no compensation for new claimants and the potential loss of benefits for anyone who won them since the law passed.
“I want to make sure that coal country doesn’t assume that they are going to be taken care of just because a lot of our political leaders have voiced support for our region,” he said. “I wish I could be more optimistic that they truly would keep their promise.”
The uncertainty about these benefits is even more worrisome to her because of evidence showing an increase in both the prevalence and severity of black lung cases
-------------------------------------
“I wish I could be more optimistic that they truly would keep their promise.”
Hello, we are talking about Republicans. You know, "Let him die". These coal people are totally fucked. And the comments below the article. Sad.
The GOP base always voting against their own self interests.