The Department of Veterans Affairs must decide whether to add new
diseases to its list of conditions presumed to be linked to Agent
Orange. It also faces calls to compensate naval veterans and those who
served along the Korean demilitarized zone.
With 2016 drawing to a close and a new presidential administration
poised to take over, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs faces an
array of decisions related to the herbicide Agent Orange, which
contained the toxic chemical dioxin and was used to kill vegetation
during the Vietnam War.
In the past, the VA has found enough evidence to link 14 health conditions, including various cancers, to Agent Orange exposure. In March, a federal panel of scientific experts said there is now evidence
to suggest that Agent Orange exposure may be linked to bladder cancer
and hypothyroidism. It also confirmed, as previous experts have said,
that there is some evidence of an association with hypertension, stroke
and various neurological ailments similar to Parkinson’s Disease.
As part of our Reliving Agent Orange series, ProPublica and The Virginian-Pilot have been recording the voices of those impacted by the herbicide, which contained the toxic chemical dioxin. Watch the videos.
Since then, a VA-led study has found stronger evidence to link hypertension,
more commonly known as high blood pressure, to Agent Orange exposure.
But high blood pressure is common as people age, so compensating
veterans for the condition could be expensive.
If the VA adds those conditions to its list of diseases connected to
Agent Orange, anyone who has them and who stepped foot in Vietnam—even
for a day--could be eligible for disability payments from the VA.
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