Testing for asbestos exposure OK'd

November 20, 2006

The Architect of the Capitol in Washington has agreed to foot the bill for diagnostic testing of 10 employees of the Capitol Power Plant tunnel.

A letter to key U.S. Senate appropriators indicates the men believe they were exposed to extremely high levels of radiation while working on the tunnel, The Hill newspaper reported.

Initially the Architect of the Capitol denied a request by the tunnel employees to pay for travel to Detroit to obtain testing at the National Center for Vermiculite and Asbestos-Related Cancer.

Following the denial, the men sent a letter to Sen. Dick Dubin, D-Ill., requesting that Congress foot the bill for the 10 to be evaluated in Detroit.

In a letter released Friday, the Architect of the Capitol recommended that the testing be done by two pulmonary specialists in the Washington area. It said the employees will be authorized administrative leave and reimbursed for any travel expenses.

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