Insurance companies are keeping a wary eye on an asbestos reform bill that is getting more and more expensive by the minute.
While continuing to support the process, insurance representatives said before they decide how to proceed they need to wait and see how the legislation, S. 1125, ends up following continuing action by the Senate Judiciary Committee.
"We have to wait and see what happens and add it all up," said David Farmer, senior vice president of federal affairs for the Downers Grove, Ill.-based Alliance of American Insurers.
He noted that recent action by the Judiciary Committee has substantially increased the potential costs of the legislation.
Initially, S. 1125 would have established a $108 billion trust fund, with $45 billion coming from the insurance industry, to resolve asbestos-related claims.
