The Department of Veterans Affairs plans to expand disability claims for military service members whose conditions are presumptively related to toxic exposures, officials announced Thursday.
The VA will begin the process to consider adding respiratory conditions such as asthma, sinusitis, and rhinitis to the department’s list of chronic disabilities to cover veterans who served in Southwest Asia, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan during or after the Persian Gulf War, the department said.
There was an internal review process within the VA that examined scientific evidence on the relationship between exposure to particulate matter and the incidence of such respiratory illnesses that led to this decision, according to a VA news release.
VETERANS AFFAIRS TO RECONSIDER AGENT ORANGE CLAIMS FOR CERTAIN VIETNAM VETERANS
That review yielded the recommendation that the VA consider creating presumptions of service connection between exposure to toxic materials and respiratory conditions.
“VA is establishing a holistic approach to determining toxic exposure presumption going forward,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough in a statement. “We are moving out smartly in initiating action to consider these and other potential new presumptions, grounded in science and in keeping with my authority as Secretary of VA.”
Today, I announced two very important decisions that will affect millions of Veterans who served in the Vietnam War and in Southwest Asia, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan during the Persian Gulf War and after September 11, 2001. https://t.co/BSLKm64byc (1/2)
— Office of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (@SecVetAffairs) May 27, 2021
The VA will start to implement provisions passed in the 2021 defense authorization bill that add bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and Parkinson’s to the list of conditions presumptively associated with exposure to Agent Orange.
Vietnam War veterans who were previously denied benefits for one of those conditions will have their cases automatically reviewed, the department said.
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“Many of our nation’s veterans have waited a long time for these benefits,” McDonough said. “VA will not make them wait any longer.”
