agent orange and VA benefits

[Guest guest]

The House Veterans' Affairs Committee chairman vowed Wednesday to push for

the restoration of Agent Orange-related benefits and health care for Vietnam

War veterans who served in the air and water of Vietnam but never set foot

on land.

Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., said a bill he is sponsoring, HR 6562, would

provide justice for sailors and airmen who have been denied Agent Orange

claims because of a Department of Veterans Affairs policy that applies a

so-called " boots-on-the-ground " rule for determining eligibility.

" If you were there, we should care, " Filner said at a press conference,

where he was surrounded by Vietnam veterans.

The bill, introduced Tuesday, was referred to Filner's committee. Filner

said he intends to move the bill through the committee in September.

Filner said the bill would provide justice for the thousands of Vietnam

veterans who are suffering from illnesses or disease known to be related to

exposure to the herbicide used to defoliate the Vietnamese jungles. It also

would send a message to younger veterans, he said. " If we don't treat our

Vietnam veterans right, then our active-duty people know that, " Filner said.

more

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/07/military_agentorange_072308w/

HR 6562 changes the language in the original location of the definition of

service in Vietnam in Title 38 US Code to include both Blue Sky Air Force

and Blue Water Navy Veterans, and does so retroactive to 1985. This

overrides the recent court decision in the Haas case, and everything the DVA

has done, and forces them to begin processing our claims, as soon as the

bill is enacted.

more

http://vnvets.blogspot.com/

If you want to write to support this legislation you can do it here.

http://capwiz.com/fra/issues/alert/?alertid=11677126

Thank you to Fred Gersh who has been working this tirelessly for several

years.