MOH to look into black lung case

The Ministry of Health (MOH) has sent a team to inspect the case of a migrant worker who underwent open-chest surgery in Zhengzhou, Henan province, following an initial diagnosis by local health authorities that denied him free treatment and compensation for black lung disease.

Henan native Zhang Haichao, 28, had his chest opened in late June at a key hospital in the provincial capital to test his lung tissue. He was diagnosed there as having pneumoconiosis, a major occupational hazard in China, the Orient Today reported.

Previously, the government-designated Zhengzhou Occupational Disease Prevention and Treatment Center had diagnosed Zhang through chest X-ray analysis as suspected black lung disease plus tuberculosis, which denied him free treatment and compensation, the paper reported.