In some cases, the resistance to adding more to the list has not been the VA but rather the Office of Management and Budget. Michael Wildhaber, a longtime veterans law attorney who represents Blue Water Navy sailors, said the legislation is likely to pass but there could be a snag because the legislation specifies that these veterans must have been in Vietnams territorial seas, which is ambiguous. This is because VA also recognizes non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as related to service in Vietnam or the waters offshore of Vietnam during the Vietnam Era. By using our website, you agree to the use of certain cookies. Contacting us does not create an attorney-client relationship. exposure to herbicides in a location other than the Vietnam or the Korean demilitarized zone. DePodesta says that for many years his eye injury qualified him for a disability rating of 30 percent and a monthly payment of under $400. But the VA has denied his disability claim. But bureaucracy in Washington doesnt move fast enough for most veterans and their families. To be sure, the lethal form of brain cancer is affecting more than American war veterans. Curtis Evans, a Boston-based claims examiner with the Veterans Benefits Administration, told the crowd that taking the initiative with the VA was essential to reaping benefits if and when policy changed. Yes. again. That hasnt happened.. Kate filed more paperwork a few months after her husbands death for spousal compensation. Your eligibility depends on your service history and other factors. The admiral believed these illnesses were the result of his sons exposure to the defoliant during his time as a patrol boat lieutenant in Vietnam from June 1969 to August 1970. to the list in a request to OMB last fall, but the agency was still looking at data and reviewing financial estimates. The federal agency sent its sympathies but no money. A review of Petes service records confirms the exposure to the defoliant. We will do our best to respond within a reasonable amount of time (usually 3 to 10 workdays). Under the terms of the decree, the VA must re-hear cases it has previously denied if the veterans disease is later added to the list of those officially recognized as stemming from Agent Orange exposure. Without these cookies, services you have asked for cannot be provided. Of the 105,000 claims received by the Payment Program, approximately 52,000 Vietnam Veterans or their survivors received cash payments which averaged Mike Yates, 68, who served on the USS Bainbridge off the coast of Vietnam from 1971 to 1972, has prostate cancer, which is on the presumptive list. Weve added these 5 new locations to the list of presumptive locations: If you served on active duty in any of these locations, well automatically assume (or presume) that you had exposure to Agent Orange. Every Veteran enrolled in VA health care will receive an initial screening and a follow-up screening at least once every 5 years. When the diagnosis came, both Pete and Kate were sure they knew the cause: Petes exposure to the chemical defoliant Agent Orange during his time as a helicopter crew chief in Vietnam. We consider a condition presumptive when it's established by law or regulation. They may also be used to keep track of what [products, video, links, etc.] If you think youre eligible for VA health care and benefits, we encourage you to apply now. We did everything they told us to do, she said. not. Petes medical bills, Kate said, were covered by a combination of Medicare and insurance through Kates job. In a 2007 ruling. Moore said the VA has forced each of these veterans to prove the exact source of their Agent Orange exposure, and that this is close to impossible in most cases because the records that would prove most of these exposures simply dont exist. But its only the first step.. Get a list of other radiation presumptive locations. In 1982, Wildhaber said, most countries signed a treaty that calls for the definition to be 12 nautical miles offshore. The National Academy of Medicines 2018 report, which will rely on datasets collected up until 2016, isnt due until this fall, said spokeswoman Dana Korsen. The Vietnam War may be over, but the battle continues for many Vietnam veterans. CORRECTION: A previous version of this story indicated Pete Naylor enlisted in the Army at age 19. Did it save lives? The committee voted unanimouslyto send a bill to the full House. Since then he says he's made a vow to raise awareness. Being on her own gives Kates quest for compensation added urgency. WebPeak troop strength in Vietnam: 543,482 (April 30, 1968). When we receive a Supplemental Claim, well review the claim again. But you dont need to wait for us to contact you before you file a Supplemental Claim. But you dont need to wait for us to contact you before you reapply. Many vets think the VAs refusal to give esophageal cancer a blanket recognition is because the agency is less than enthused about the costs of adding more of them to the list. He died in November 2015. One way for veterans to get started if theyve never explored a link between their medical ailments and Agent Orange is to see if they qualify for afree Agent Orange exam. If someone you know has lost their battle to Agent Orange learn how to honor them in our In Memory Program. For example, a veteran diagnosed decades ago with type2 diabetes may not have noticed when the government later added the condition to its list of ailments linked to Agent Orange, says Linda Schwartz, special advisor on health to the Vietnam Veterans of America. Ask about the screening at your next VA health care appointment. Please return to AARP.org to learn more about other benefits. Vietnam reports that some 400,000 people have suffered death or permanent injury from exposure to Agent Orange. VA currently presumes that some diseases resulted from exposure to herbicides like Agent Orange. APPLICATION 202. The federal agency, known as OMB, controls the VAs purse strings and has in the past been hostile to the idea of adding costs to the budget for veterans services. She has reapplied for the spousal benefit six times in the last three years, hoping the VA will reconsider its decision. return to top Health Care 877-222-8387 Benefits 800-827-1000 TDD (Hearing Impaired) 800-829-4833 Additional amounts are paid to certain Veterans with severe disabilities ("special monthly compensation") and certain Veterans with dependents. There shouldnt be a category for you to get help, said Kaderlik. Competent medical evidence of an actual connection between herbicide exposure and the current disability. Veterans service groups say it can be worth trying to bring such claims even though they can be difficult. Once a disease is put on the list, it is easier to get disability compensation for it because the VA presumes the disease is a result of exposure to Agent Orange for veterans who served in Vietnam or its inland waterways between 1962 and 1975. EIN: 52-1149668, Copyright 2023 The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Javascript must be enabled for the correct page display, Place your shirt order (online only) through our vendor Custom Ink between now and when the sale ends on, Shirts are produced and shipped after the order window ends on. Apply for VA health care, find out how to access services, and manage your health and benefits online. Nearly 58,000 Americans and 2-3 million Vietnamese, many of them civilians, were killed in the war. The report included information from studies published in 2013 and 2014 that focused on Korean veterans of the Vietnam War (South Korea sent around 300,000 troops to the fight alongside the United States.) Like veterans, survivors also can sometimes get retroactive payments in addition to qualifying for monthly death benefits. Learn how vehicle tech like blind spot warnings and drowsy driving alerts can help make driving safer. ", Getting extra compensation certainly helps. The problem, veterans advocates say, is that veterans dont necessarily make the connection between a disease they have had for years and the expanded Agent Orange list. They quickly filed paperwork with the Department of Veterans Affairs, or VA, for disability payments. There shouldnt be a category for you to get help.. A veteran of the Vietnam War, he has been working on issues relating to Agent Orange exposure since 1989. Have you been affected by Camp Lejeune water contamination? If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising. Disclaimer: This information is not legal advice. Find out how to file a Supplemental Claim. These veterans dont need to prove that they were exposed to Agent Orange to qualify for benefits related to ailments on the list. i am dieing from it and most of my mortar unit is dead. we spent all 1968 in the bush or in some freeking lz or firebase that was sprayed or we had So why is every veteran and widow who files a disability or survivor claim forced to re-litigate the issue?. I cant go to work.. There are still thousands of vets who dont realize their disease is on the list, says Bart Stichman, executive director of the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP), a nonprofit that helps veterans, survivors and active duty personnel pursue service-related benefits. Depends on which Veteran you ask When this man was 18 he left his farm to push a bicycle loaded with 600 pound of rice, his personal weapon and 30 You may be eligible for these VA benefits as the surviving family member of a Veteran: Exposure to hazardous chemicals and materials, Airborne hazards and open burn pit registry, Environmental health registry evaluation for Veterans, Camp Lejeune water contamination health issues, VA benefits for spouses, dependents, survivors, and family caregivers. The Reagan White House wanted to cut funding for veterans centers and Agent Orange epidemiological studies that had begun under Max Cleland and Jimmy Carter, said Hagel, who from that era to now has been widely lauded as a champion for veterans. You will be asked to register or log in. 2023 BuzzFeed, Inc. All rights reserved. The VA suggests that veterans can get help from thislist of government-accredited Veterans and Military Service Organizations. "You know we killed the jungle with back packs, sprayed so we had a good perimeter," said Stenvold. If a veteran is seeing a civilian doctor who isnt well-versed in veterans issues, she says, the doctor wouldnt necessarily associate the diagnosis with Agent Orange. (See. While the VA acknowledges a link between exposure to Agent Orange and cancers such as Hodgkins disease, multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkins lymphoma, it says the evidence isnt there for esophageal cancer and 34 other diseases that Vietnam veterans have sought to have added to the list of recognized, service-related illnesses. Now they have to own up to their responsibility., It is my medical oncology opinion, DeLeo wrote, that advanced aggressive squamous cell carcinoma esophagus was directly related to Agent Orange exposure, given lack of other significant risk factors noted.. This means well pay you the amount you would have received from August 10, 2022, to the date we grant your application. When veterans dont think to apply for disability benefits based on conditions added to the VAs Agent Orange list in recent years, they can miss out on sizable payments. Pegi Scarlett was a bit nervous in the moments leading up to her speech last November at a meeting of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington, D.C. It was kind of intimidating at first, with all the epidemiologists and physicians watching, but they gave me a very warm reception, said Scarlett, 65. But then Navy Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, who had personally ordered the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam, delivered a report to the VA in 1990 arguing that the chemical was dangerous to everyone exposed to it and that the government knew of the risks as far back as the 1960s. Even if you did not serve in Vietnam or the Korean demilitarized zone during the specified time periods, you can still apply for disability compensation if you were exposed to an herbicide while in the military and believe it led to the onset of a disease. Learn about other presumptive conditions based on exposure to hazardous materials. Finally, we invite you to contact us and we welcome your calls, letters and electronic mail. "Agent Orange" refers to a blend of tactical herbicides the U.S. military sprayed in the jungles of Vietnam and around the Korean demilitarized zone to remove trees and dense tropical foliage that provided enemy cover. That exposure came from such things as ingestion of polluted water, cleaning off planes covered in Agent Orange, the onboard storage of Agent Orange, and missions to Vietnam that did not make it into personnel records.. Today, many believe over 400,000 Vietnam veterans are currently suffering from their exposure and tens of thousands have already died. WebAgent Orange was a tactical herbicide the U.S. military used to clear leaves and vegetation for military operations mainly during the Vietnam War. In some cases, the resistance to adding more to the list has not been the VA but, rather the Office of Management and Budget, . My husband was my hero, he took care of me, Josenhans said. you viewed to avoid repetition. AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that empowers people to choose how they live as they age. That toxicity is coming back to haunt veterans and it's also affecting their children Well my dad was a Vietnam veteran, my brother has brain cancer believed to be caused by Agent Orange passed through my father, said Ashely Busby, daughter of a Vietnam Vet. You served your country. It is a mixture of equal parts of two herbicides, 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D.In addition to its damaging environmental You can also call the Agent Orange Help Line at 1-800-749-8387 or send an e-mail to GW/AOHelpline@vba.va.gov. Va will reconsider its decision Army at age 19 organization that empowers to! Website, you will experience less targeted advertising learn how to access services, and manage your health benefits. A tactical herbicide the U.S. military used to keep track of what [ products,,! Lost their battle to Agent Orange to qualify for benefits related to ailments on the.!.. get a list of other radiation presumptive locations, he took of! 2-3 million Vietnamese, many of them civilians, were covered by a combination of Medicare and insurance Kates!: 543,482 ( April 30, 1968 ) 543,482 ( April 30, )... Such claims even though they can be difficult, etc. happened.. Kate more! 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