The High Court has ruled that a company responsible for the asbestos death of a former worker must contribute over 10,000 of his hospice care costs.
Organisations in the Westcountry have welcomed the decision, which could lead to more funds being available to help terminal patients and their families.
His Honour Judge Anthony Thornton QC handed down the judgement in the case of Drake and Starkey v Foster Wheeler Ltd last month.
It concerned James Willson, who went to work building new boilers aged 20 in 1951. He died of the asbestos cancer mesothelioma in March 2007 after 23 days at St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney.
His daughters brought the case because they felt that the cost to the hospice of providing essential palliative care as a direct result of exposure to asbestos should be recoverable.
The hospice was awarded 10,021.
George Lillie, director of clinical services at St Luke’s Hospice in Plymouth, said: “We will be looking very carefully at what this landmark legal decision might mean for St Luke’s in terms of recovering any costs relating to the care of individual patients.
“We have cared for a number of mesothelioma patients over the years and it is likely that numbers will rise in the future. Therefore, this legal decision is broadly welcomed. The specialist palliative care we provide at St Luke’s is free of charge to patients but it is very expensive to fund. So, as a registered charity, reliant upon charitable giving, it is our duty to explore all possibilities.”
A “bed day” at St Luke’s costs about 500, with the average length of stay for a patient 11.5 days. This means a cost of 5,750 before any medications have been added.
Paul Brinsley, chief executive of Cornwall Hospice Care, said: “We welcome this judgement which potentially allows hospices to receive recompense for the cost of providing specialist care to patients with this condition.
“Hospices are largely funded by charitable giving and therefore any contribution towards running costs is welcomed.”