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The black lung crisis deepens in Appalachia

The black lung crisis deepens in Appalachia

Up First from NPR
Aug 9, 2026 38 min
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About this episode

Rates of black lung disease amongst Appalachia’s coal miners are at the highest they’ve been in 50 years. Recent data shows that a third of veteran miners have the disease. The epidemic is also striking younger workers, too. <br/><br/>On <em>The Sunday Story,</em> Howard Berkes investigates the devastating human cost on Appalachian families, decades of regulatory failures, and why life-saving protections from toxic silica dust remain stalled in federal court.<br/><br/>Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at <a href="http://plus.npr.org/"target="_blank" >plus.npr.org</a>.<br/><br/>See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.<br/><br/><a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>

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