The Iron Range Resources board wants to put more money into studying a rare lung cancer that strikes miners disproportionately.
The board voted Thursday to spend $250,000 on medical testing as part of a larger study of mesothelioma, the fatal cancer identified in 58 miners. The money won't be spent unless Iron Range Resources Commissioner Sandy Layman and Governor Tim Pawlenty also approve.
Representative Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, said he proposed the spending because he didn't want the research to wait until the Legislature convenes in February. His proposal would require the state or another entity to match the amount.
Rukavina and others have criticized Pawlenty and the Minnesota Health Department over the mesothelioma issue. Former Health Commissioner Dianne Mandernach resigned after admitting that she waited a year to release data on 35 miners who got mesothelioma.
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
