The Insurance Information Institute recently completed a white paper on the health risks associated with silicosis and the rising number of silica-related claims being filed. As Congress continues to debate a national solution to the asbestos litigation crisis, new personal injury claims are being filed on behalf of individuals suffering from occupational lung disease caused by exposure to silica, the III noted.

The report defines silica and silicosis, and provides statistics for mortality rates and cancer links. Even as silicosis-related deaths are declining, the number of personal injury claims being filed on behalf of individuals suffering from occupational lung disease caused by exposure to silica appears to be increasing sharply, according to the report.

Although recognizing the inevitability of comparisons between silica and asbestos, the report notes that, between 1990 and 1999, the mortality rate for silicosis was one-fifth of the asbestosis mortality rate. In addition silica-related claims and costs appear significantly smaller in comparison to asbestos claims. Just as asbestos claims and litigation have spread far beyond the original manufacturers of asbestos to target many different types of industries in the U.S., a similar widening of the silica litigation net could involve substantially more plaintiffs and defendants than have been identified to date, the report warns.