WVU will pay for testing in asbestos case

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- West Virginia University agreed Thursday to pay for medical testing for up to 20 years for 5,600 current and former employees who fear they were exposed to asbestos on the job.
The university will cover the costs of chest X-rays, lung-function exams and other testing as often as once a year under a settlement approved by a judge.
The cost of the monitoring has yet to be established.
"Even if it's $2 million or $3 million, it's incalculable in terms of the benefits to the claimants," state Circuit Judge Tod Kaufman said.
Employees sued after the school's coliseum was closed during the 1999-2000 academic year and federal regulators demanded a major cleanup of asbestos in the ceiling.
The school later agreed to pay a $10,500 fine for mishandling the job.
The lawsuit alleged university officials knew for several years that the insulation was in poor condition.
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