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Friday, September 24, 1999 Published at 04:32 GMT 05:32 UK
UK
Miners set for emphysema pay-outs
Thousands of ex-miners suffer from emphysema and pneumoconiosis
Tens of thousands of miners are expected to lodge claims against British Coal after five of their former colleagues, who suffer from chronic emphysema, were awarded compensation.
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| The BBC's Jeremy Ball: "Many of these claims are from widows of miners for whom they were too late" |
The claims, which are backed by the Union of Democratic Mineworkers (UDM), have dragged on for seven years.
Each of the five will now be paid between £5,000 and £12,000.
Smokers get less
But British Coal has only been liable for exposure to coal dust which they could have prevented.
Those who smoked were awarded less than non-smokers.
But for some the settlement comes too late, and there are currently 2,000 outstanding claims from miners' widows.
Earlier this year more than 5,000 Scottish miners received pay-outs of about £50,000 each after contracting lung diseases from exposure to coal dust.
Industry experts believe the final pay-out to former miners could be £2bn.
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Relevant Stories 24 Sep 99 | Medical notes Emphysema factfile 23 Jun 99 | UK Scottish miners win pay-out 26 Mar 99 | UK 'About time' for miners' record payout 26 Mar 99 | UK Record payout for sick miners |
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Department of Trade and Industry Emphysema Online Support Group World Coal Institute |
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