Chinanews, Beijing, Dec. 20 – Pneumosilicosis has become the biggest occupational disease in China and experts warn that it might become a serious social problem in China’s rural areas by 2010, the Workers' Daily reported.

 

Information from the Ministry of Health shows that by 2005, China had a total of 607,570 cases of lung diseases, with 137,481 people dead and 9,173 being newly reported cases. Some experts say that the situation might be even worse in reality.

 

Pneumosilicosis and coal worker's pneumoconiosis remain to be the most common lung diseases. In recent years, many acute pneumosilicosis cases occur and the number of young people suffering from pneumosilicosis is on the rise. Lots of pneumosilicosis cases occur in provinces and regions such as Zhejiang, Guangxi, Qinghai, Anhui, Hunan, Guizhou and Gansu, according to related reports.

 

Experts attribute the high incidence of pneumosilicosis in recent years to some companies’ disrespect for migrant workers’ health and life and negligence in carrying out safety procedures. In some places, local governments failed to supervise workers' working conditions while, on the other hand, migrant workers pay little attention to take necessary measures to protect themselves.

 

Most of migrant workers are the main income earners in their families. After they become ill, the whole families are usually incapable of making any money. Moreover, the high medical costs will make the family suffer from a heavy financial burden, which might lead to a series of problems such as family disintegration, old people with no one to take care of and children being unable to go to school. Experts warn that by 2010, pneumosilicosis might become a serious social problem in some rural areas in China.