VA sends another Christmas Present /Birth Defects Reporting

See story at VA Watchdog…
http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/nf09/nfdec09/nf120309-1.htm

As most of you can figure by now I am bowing out of this fight as it makes no sense to me anymore with the past and current politicians and lack of simple logic and common sense… but will comment from time to time. I am writing a series of articles (with the help of Richard) to be posted and then sent to the Texas Tech Vietnam Archives for future researchers and generations to see just how American Veterans are really treated by a despicable government and its leadership. Yet, the same folks are reelected time after time after time. Just mindboggling!

Now as you know there is a flurry of Veterans Issues and activity in Congress for what I call nothing but a reelection façade. In many cases, as most of you already know, those that sponsor the bills do not even vote for them but then take election campaign credit. So be careful of what these prostitutes tell you and what they say they are doing. I have not seen or heard anything on Congressman Kagen’s Bill to add the gastro cancers as well as the pancreatic cancers I get e-mail on almost daily from dying Veterans or their widow. If someone knows please let me know.

I suspected long ago it was going no where and will only surface about reelection time. Meanwhile the state VA reps are honestly trying to get these claims approved. Unlike our paid for VSO’s who will not ‘demand something be done’ as they do not want to alienate the so-called congressional friends they have made. At least that is what I am told.

For 40 plus years we have had no friends in congress or if they were they were tuned back at every turn by DOD/VA/White House and other congressional elected officials who would rather not admit and pay for the mistakes made by Johnson and McNamara. What we get is AO Awareness Month or some such crap as that.

We should have realized this right off but unfortunately (NO INTERNET AT THE TIME) we did not know about all the other transgressions made by our government against other era Veterans going way back to mustard gas and the cover-ups that went on with those issues. Trusting those in government was the largest mistake we made.

As I pointed out previously when VA wins a battle against Veterans a fast letter is used in how to deny these claims. No waiting around to update some registry… just start denying based on a letter.

Yet, as you can see by the article even though everyone has admitted these associated issues to “at least as likely as not” nothing will be done until the VA and the other Washington Bureaucratic Offices take their time in doing what should have been done 20 years ago. And there are other issues many issues that should be addressed and will not until there are just a few left. Such as all SEER site cancers especially any adenocarcinoma.

I still would like an explanation from someone on how we have these cancers of the immune system and cancers of the blood associated and yet in no case can it only create any autoimmune disorders or disorders considered originating from a th1 and th2 immune system confusion response, which is where the cancer starts to begin with. How is this scientifically, medically, or biologically possible? Since the dioxin dose rate long ago for autoimmune was considered much less than that of a developed cancer…reference EPA analysis.

Terry explains the stay at the BVA level:

As required by 38 U.S.C. 1116, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will issue regulations through notice and comment rule-making procedures to establish the new presumptions of service connection for those diseases. Those regulations will take effect on that date that a final rule is published in the Federal Register. Until that time, VA does not have authority to establish service connection and award benefits based upon the planned new presumptions.

Ironically Mr. Terry as the higher headquarters for VARO which he is taking the stand on this issue will not take the other side and say something such as: TO: VARO’s

BVA has already found the following xx amount of cases associated by testimony and medical evidence and adjudicated as found as “at least as likely as not” associated to exposures in service to the nation. Therefore, it is recommended that all such cases that have a diagnosis of the issue in question be approved at VARO level; and if not then BVA will begin immediately to automatically approve these "redundant claims" as approved based on previous adjudicated legal procedures.

You see, no one including our congress wants to get rid of the backlog of claims, certainly not Mr. Terry or Mr. Mayes of the VA. It is not that hard to do this and certainly guarantee that no Veteran or Widow would get anything they did not earn or warrant. (Unlike our welfare system.)

Over 50% of VARO claims either remanded or overturned by BVA… then something is rotten in Denmark and in this so-called Veterans’ legal system. No… let’s just try and retry the same case over and over and over with the only difference is the docket number.

Maybe your congressperson or your senators can explain it to you as to the why trying the same case over and over for Veterans and Widows alike makes sense…it makes no sense to me other than budget control.

I would continue filing claims (Veterans and Widows) as the article suggests and then wait for the announcement of approval date whenever that might come. I would suggest at least five to eight months which is what I think it took for the primary amyloidosis issues.

My first article will be on the Korean DMZ Veterans and how they are being denied showing up days after the DOD said they quit spraying with no concern to dioxin half life. At my reunion, one example was given of a two day missed date and the Veteran was denied. Of course my main example will be Veteran David Hill now deceased and how he was denied by Nashville Regional and the overwhelming evidence he had but he was outside the so-called window. Had he been a civilian working along the DMZ he would have been’ inside the widow’ by two years even with no half life issues. Just makes no sense what-so-ever except budget control.

One of our stalwart supporters Ms. Betty Mekdeci of the AO Birth Defects Registry sent the following E-mail.

“The Chicago Tribune is running a four-part series on Agent Orange-related birth defects and disabilities. The reporter said that the first story should be in the printed and on-line version of the Chicago Tribune starting tomorrow.”
www.chicagotribune.com