|
Linda Chapman of Spencer has completed her walk to Washington. "It has been a
remarkable journey," said Chapman, who lost her husband to black lung. She started
a month long trek to call attention to the plight of black lung victims and widows.
Chapman is seeking to make a difference, she says, and her efforts are not over. She
wants more help for black lung victims.
Rep. Nick Joe Rahall re-introduced a bill to make it easier for black lung victims to get
help. The current process requires the hiring of lawyers, lots of money and more often
going to court to prove the need.
Rahall said one of the glitches relates to "the Linda Chapmans' of the world," who
have to file another claim after their husbands have died.
Chapman said many people on her walk to Washington were shocked at the way
black lung windows are treated by the bureaucracy.
| 
