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The United Mine Workers of America has told a federal court that retirees of some of Gov. Jim Justice s coal companies are still having prescription drug coverage issues, roughly five years into a federal lawsuit the UMWA and retirees filed over coverage lapses. Bluestone Coal Corp., a Justice coal company, blamed a faulty records transfer process, the UMWA told the court. ....
It has taken Gov. Jim Justice little time to depict federal regulators as anti-coal miner agents of economic distress, but it has taken Justice’s coal companies much longer to agree to pay fines for failing to keep their miners safe. U.S. Rep. Alex Mooney, R-W.Va., a Justice opponent in the 2024 Senate race, has criticized the Justice coal companies for their business troubles and failure to provide uninterrupted prescription drug coverage. But Mooney also has drawn scrutiny for treatment of workers: his own congressional staff. ....
Gov. Jim Justice s business failures and unmet obligations have drawn grievances from banks and foreign companies. But they ve also affected members of some of West Virginia s most vulnerable communities, including company Justice company retirees like Pinkey Mullens enduring company drug coverage interruptions and southern coalfields suffering environmental and property tax revenue losses. ....
The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection has scheduled an informal conference on a permit renewal application from the Gov. Jim Justice-controlled Bluestone Coal Corp. Bluestone seeks to renew the permit spanning parts of Wyoming and McDowell counties with a long string of environmental violations. ....