A recent plan drafted by Hunan province for the prevention and control of occupational diseases is expected to reduce the incidence of occupational diseases in the province, because it requires the medical records of workers exposed to occupational health hazards to be listed and mandates that they undergo regular check-ups and, if necessary, receive treatment, says an article on www.voc.com.cn. Excerpts:

Since 2000, nearly 70 coalminers in a town in Hunan's Lixian county have been diagnosed with pneumoconiosis, some of whom have died. More than 100 other miners suffering from the same disease have not reported to the authorities.

Some employers had been exploiting the loopholes in labor laws to expose frontline workers to health hazards without taking measures to prevent and control occupational diseases.