Court Denies Compensation on Pleural Plaque Claim, Cites Lack of 'Disease'

SALEM, Ore. - The Oregon Court of Appeals has upheld the denial of a man's asbestos-related occupational disease claim, stating that although the unanimous medical recommendation is to monitor the claimant's pleural plaques with annual chest X-rays, he does not currently suffer from a "disease" as defined by state law. Solberg v. Tice Electric, et al., No. A129565 (Ore. Ct. App.).

The court also found the claim distinguishable from its previous ruling in K-Mart v. Evenson (167 Or 46, 51, 1 P3d 477, rev den, 331 Or 191 [200]), in which the court said that, in the occupational injury context, …