Experts tell Los Angeles health commission engineered‑stone silicosis is rising; motion to study city ban fails

Dr. Fazio, a pulmonologist, told the Los Angeles City Health Commission that Los Angeles and Los Angeles County are seeing an emerging epidemic of silicosis tied to fabricated engineered‑stone countertops, and warned that workers are becoming ill after only five to 10 years of exposure.

The case counts and regulatory responses make the issue immediately relevant to city policy and worker safety: Dr. Fazio described a rapid rise in identified cases, Cal/OSHA officials outlined a new permanent silica standard and enforcement steps, and commissioners debated whether to study banning fabrication of engineered stone within city limits. A motion to study such a ban failed on a 3–3 vote.

Dr. Fazio said engineered stone — sometimes sold as quartz, quartzite or artificial stone — contains markedly higher crystalline silica (commonly reported in the presentation as above 90–96% by weight) than traditional countertop materials (marble <5%, granite roughly 30–45%). He said the material’s popularity over the past decade has been followed by an uptick in occupational disease because cutting and polishing engineered stone produce very high concentrations of respirable silica dust.

“Engineered stone silicosis is an epidemic in Los Angeles,” Dr. Fazio said during the presentation, describing cases he and colleagues have tracked and published. He told the commission the team initially published 52 cases (71% in Los Angeles County) and said statewide case counts later rose to figures he cited as about 294 cases, with 15 deaths and roughly 30 lung transplantations to date. He emphasized that silicosis has no cure and that lung transplantation is not a perfect remedy.

Dr. Fazio described clinical and public‑health patterns drawn from local screening and hospital data: many affected workers are men in their 20s–40s, predominantly Latino immigrants, often underinsured or uninsured, and presenting late in the disease…