WASHINGTON - Friday, Montana Sen. Max Baucus was in Libby with U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt for a firsthand look at the results of asbestos contamination there.

Tuesday, Baucus followed up by asking Leavitt to fund ongoing health care efforts in the small northwestern Montana community.

Baucus delivered a letter to Leavitt asking him to provide a direct grant to fund the Center for Asbestos-Related Diseases Clinic in Libby, facing mounting financial problems in the wake of a drastic reduction of health coverage by the W.R. Grace Co., which operated a vermiculite mine in the Libby area until 1990.

Baucus also is asking Leavitt to cut the bureaucratic red tape preventing Medicare from covering many residents' health care expenses.

Baucus said the CARD clinic's expertise in diagnosing and treating disease caused by tremolite asbestos "renders it an essential resource to Libby and those who receive care from its dedicated staff."

Baucus also is drafting a separate letter to the Social Security Administration because the agency is refusing to provide disability benefits to many residents.