Veterans and Risk
Among the estimated 25 million U.S. military veterans today, hundreds of thousands were put at risk during their service of contracting various pulmonary illnesses – including mesothelioma – due to their exposure to asbestos. The link between veterans and risk is nothing new, of course. Risk comes with the job when one enters the service. But, exposure to unnecessary risk is a different matter.
Tragically, the risks of exposure to asbestos – and the risk of mesothelioma to veterans – were largely unnecessary. The carcinogenic threat posed by fibrous asbestos were well known prior to the phase-out of the material in the late 1970s; asbestos exposure in veterans was, therefore, a preventable risk, and therefore largely an unnecessary one.
Yet despite these known risks, asbestos was widely used by every military branch up until the 1980s. In all branches of military services, the groups most exposed to the risk of asbestos exposure included:
- shipyard workers
- maintenance workers
- construction workers
- electricians
If you were involved in these trades during your military service, your exposure to asbestos could constitute negligence. An attorney of the Johnson Law Group can investigate your exposure to the risks of asbestos exposure-related injury during your term of service and determine if that exposure was unnecessary. If so we can help you get the compensation that you deserve.
