ABSTRACT
By the early 1990s, state workers’ compensation systems had paid out millions of dollars in claims for byssinosis. That amount represents only a small fraction of the cost to workers of this disease and, even more disturbing, relatively few workers actually received any benefits. Many were denied compensation, many did not file for compensation, many died before they could be awarded compensation. Had the disease been recognized earlier, more textile workers might have received help far sooner, more workers might have been spared the ravages of an agonizing disease. This is an American tragedy.
