Mesothelioma and asbestos exposure in Virginia

Documented asbestos exposure in Virginia

We list only sites where asbestos is documented by a government agency or published research. Many other workplaces in Virginia likely used asbestos-containing insulation and equipment, but we do not name a site unless we can point to a record.

Shipyards in coastal Tidewater Virginia

Researchers including National Cancer Institute scientists found that mesothelioma was about four times more common than expected among white men in coastal Tidewater Virginia from 1972 to 1978. Their case-control study of 61 cases, published in 1980, linked the excess to employment in area shipyards. Three-fourths of the men had worked in shipbuilding, nearly all starting before 1950. Most were career employees, but risk was also raised among men who worked in the yards only temporarily, mainly during World War II, and who were reportedly exposed to asbestos. More of the cases than comparison subjects had worked as pipecoverers or pipefitters, and four of the five women with mesothelioma had husbands who worked in shipbuilding. A companion study by the same group examined lung and laryngeal cancers in relation to shipyard employment in coastal Virginia.

Pipe covering at Newport News Shipbuilding

A 1980 federal court opinion from the Eastern District of Virginia, Oman v. Johns-Manville Corp., describes the plaintiffs as present and former employees of Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company in the pipe-covering trade who were exposed to dust from asbestos products. The opinion states it was undisputed that the shipyard is subject to the federal Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act and had paid compensation to those employees for their asbestos-related injuries. The Longshore Act is a federal workers' compensation program that covers many shipyard workers; the Department of Labor runs it.

Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth is a federal Superfund site, but the EPA records we reviewed do not list asbestos among its contaminants, so we do not describe it as an asbestos site here. The Tidewater studies above covered area shipyards generally.

Virginia filing deadlines

Virginia allows two years for personal injury (Va. Code 8.01-243(A)) and two years for wrongful death (8.01-244). For asbestos injuries, Virginia has its own start date: the claim accrues when a doctor first communicates a diagnosis of the asbestos-related disease to the person, not when the exposure happened (8.01-249(4)).

Also note: Asbestos claims accrue when a doctor first communicates the diagnosis (8.01-249(4)).

Deadlines and discovery rules change and depend on the facts. Confirm them with a lawyer licensed in Virginia. Compare other states in our national table.

Treatment in Virginia

NCI lists 2 designated cancer centers in Virginia that see patients:

VA health care in Virginia

Veterans with asbestos-related illness can get care through VA. These VA health care systems serve Virginia; each system's page lists its medical centers and clinics:

• VA Hampton health care
• VA Richmond health care
• VA Salem health care

For benefits, see veterans and VA benefits or our veteran claim help form.

Workers' compensation

Work-related illness may fall under Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission. Each state's system has its own notice and filing deadlines. NCI notes that federal civilian employees and longshore and harbor workers have separate federal programs through the U.S. Department of Labor.

Other states

California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Washington. See all states.