Construction workers gambling with health

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Construction workers gambling with health

Industry files most valley fever compensation claims in state

By NADA BEHZIZ, Californian Staff Writer

e-mail: nbehziz@...

http://bakersfield.com/special/valleyfever/story/5501196p-

5490235c.html

Posted: Sunday May 8th, 2005, 6:35 PM

Last Updated: Monday May 9th, 2005, 10:51 AM

Hundreds of construction workers from across the country have come

to Kern County seeking hard work and good pay.

They have found both, but a few have also ended up with a malady

little known outside these parts -- valley fever.

The disease, caused by inhaling spores from a fungus native to the

San Joaquin Valley and Arizona, has infected thousands of workers

over the years.

It is well documented by valley fever specialists that if you live

and work close to the soil you are more likely to get the disease.

" It's not likely to be five times as much, but they are definitely

more at risk, " said Dr. Tom Larwood, who has conducted decades of

research on valley fever. " Construction workers are stirring up the

soil and spreading the spores. "

But the mold spores die off once land is developed as concrete and

pavement act as a lid, keeping the spores underground.

The state Workers' Compensation Board recognizes that certain cases

of valley fever are job-related. But it's difficult to prove origin.

Since it is nearly impossible to determine where a valley fever

patient breathed in the spores, insurance companies, regulating

agencies and the Kern County Health Department can't usually pin

infections on specific work done for individual companies.

Often, workers whose duties include wind and dust exposure are

compensated for treatment and lost work time.

The construction industry files the most workers' compensation

claims involving valley fever.

Debi Ecobiza has lived in Porterville for 45 years and grew up

believing that if you caught valley fever, you either quickly got

over it or died.

She knows better now. She's been fighting valley fever and the state

to pay her on-going bills for nearly six years.

" It's been humility all the way dealing with state compensation, "

Ecobiza said.

The state determined she contracted valley fever while working

construction on the Porterville Developmental Center.

It put her on temporary disability. But when that ran out the state

wouldn't pay another dime. She almost drained her savings until she

finally received medical disability.

She says her valley fever symptoms linger, preventing her from

working.

" I was raised that you work your way through it and you'll feel

better. But one month of full-time work and I couldn't take it

anymore, " Ecobiza said. " The pain was too much. "

The night sweats were tolerable, but it was the chronic pain in her

joints and the fatigue that kept Ecobiza stuck in bed.

The state, however, says Ecobiza's only remaining disability is her

mental health.

The state offered a settlement for only her psychiatric bills,

Ecobiza said.

" If you'd had to deal with what I had to deal with, yeah, you'd be

depressed too, " Ecobiza, 50, said. " If it's not in the doctor's

textbook, you must be nuts. "

Ecobiza is not eligible to claim future medical expenses related to

her valley fever.

So far this year there have been three to four valley fever cases

filed with the State Compensation Insurance Fund, which insures

about 60 percent of Bakersfield employers.

That's average for claims of mild to moderate cases filed each year.

" Every now and then we get a (claim for a) really severe (valley

fever case), " said , claims manager with the insurance

fund.

The most recent was for a man whose 2003 case of valley fever had

spread to his brain. So far, the claim has cost the state $75,000.

A lawsuit was filed in 2001 and 2002 by seven construction workers

against Alstom Power, the main contracting company at the La Paloma

power plant in McKittrick.

The workers said they picked up valley fever while working at the

site.

They also argued that the companies they worked for failed to warn

them about the dangers of valley fever, did not tell workers how to

protect themselves and failed to take necessary precautions to

minimize exposure. The plant was completed in 2003.

The lawsuit against the plant is pending. A dollar amount will be

set at a June mediation hearing and the trial is set to begin in

October.

Construction companies and affiliated unions said they do warn

workers about the dangers of valley fever.

Starting in the 1990s, the Plumbers, Pipe and Refrigeration Fitters

Local 409 union began posting memos at construction sites about

valley fever.

And when a new construction job came to Bakersfield under its

jurisdiction the union would discuss the hazards and dangers that

came with valley fever with the contractors, said Henry Avila,

business agent for the union.

Avila worries the message isn't reaching the employees.

" These companies that blow into town and blow out of town, do they

take the time to educate their employees? " Avila asked. " I highly

doubt it. We're very concerned that these guys aren't being

informed. "

Construction companies claim that they inform employees of all

potential health risks and obey dust laws by constantly watering

down the work site and keeping dust masks on hand.

Who's picking up tab for research?

I just moved here -- why am I sick?

If a valley fever vaccine were available, would you take it?