Brother Of Mesothelioma Victim Thanks Marie Curie Hospice For Care And Support Received
Specialist asbestos-related disease lawyers from Irwin Mitchell’s Leeds office have secured care costs of over £3,400 for the Marie Curie Hospice on Maudsley Street Bradford where one of their clients was cared for before he died from mesothelioma.
Expert lawyers at Irwin Mitchell acting on behalf of the family of Michael Bannister, from Horton Top, Bradford, who died of the asbestos-related cancer, secured his care costs at the hospice as part of a settlement from the insurers of his former employers, Associated Weavers Limited.
Michael had worked for the company at its premises just off the Wakefield Road in Bradford. He was exposed to asbestos from the insulation and lagging used in and around the factory.
It follows a landmark ruling in a 2010 case led by Irwin Mitchell which found that the insurers of a company responsible for the death of a worker from asbestos should contribute to his or her hospice care costs.
Michael’s brother John, 62, has thanked the carers at the Marie Curie Hospice for the care they provided to his brother and was on-hand to present the cheque to Elaine Hill, the hospice manager.
John, who also comes from Bradford, said: “When my legal team at Irwin Mitchell explained to me the fact that Michael’s care was only partially funded by the NHS and that we could include a claim for the cost of Michael's care as part of the overall settlement I leapt at the opportunity.
“By doing so I have been able to repay to the Hospice the cost of my brother's care. That money can then be used to take care of someone else who is terminally ill."
Mark Aldridge, a specialist asbestos-related disease lawyer at Irwin Mitchell’s Leeds office, said:
Elaine Hill said: “While hospice care is always free at the point of delivery, many people do not realise that, at the Marie Curie Hospice Bradford, we only receive about 40 per cent of our funding from local NHS commissioning groups.
“We have to find the remaining funds from charitable donations and money we raise ourselves through other fund raising efforts. It is a constant challenge for the hospice sector to meet the costs of the care that we provide."