The Department of Defense gave VA a list of dates and
locations of herbicide tests and storage. View dates and locations:
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Herbicide Tests and Storage Outside Vietnam - Public Health
Wilkie promises diligence in effort to expand Agent Orange benefits
WASHINGTON —
Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie promised Thursday
he's not stalling an effort to add four conditions to a list of diseases
presumed to be caused by exposure to Agent Orange – a move that would grant
benefits to tens of thousands of Vietnam War veterans.
“I place significant
emphasis on getting the presumptives for Agent Orange right,” Wilkie told the
House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. “That’s a promise to you. I am doing
everything as diligently as I can.”
Some advocates and lawmakers have fought for years to create
a fast-track to benefits for Vietnam War veterans suffering from bladder
cancer, hypothyroidism, hypertension and Parkinson’s-like symptoms. The
conditions have yet to be added to a list of diseases presumed to be caused by
chemical herbicides used during the conflict, despite reports from the National
Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in 2016 and 2018 that described
a connection between the diseases and Agent Orange exposure.
Wilkie faced questions Thursday from multiple Democrats who
asked why the benefits hadn’t been granted and why they weren’t included in his
testimony or President Donald Trump’s fiscal 2021 budget plan for the agency.
Inspector general to probe whether VA chief Wilkie tried to discredit aide who reported sexual assault
The Department of Veterans Affairs’ inspector general has
opened an investigation into allegations that Secretary Robert Wilkie tried to
dig up dirt on an aide to a top Democrat in Congress after she said she was
sexually assaulted at the agency’s Washington hospital.
Inspector General Michael J. Missal, after a preliminary
review of Wilkie’s conduct following the woman’s report last fall, told
lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Thursday that he has decided to move forward with
a full-blown inquiry.
“This matter is a
high priority for our office,” Missal wrote in letters to House Veterans’
Affairs Committee Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) and six senators led by Patty
Murray (D-Wash.), who joined the chairman in demanding an investigation.
Wilkie, who previously ran the Pentagon’s personnel and
readiness operation, has denied making inquiries about the woman, Andrea
Goldstein. She serves as Takano’s senior policy adviser on female veterans
issues and is an intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve, as Wilkie once was.
Veteran benefits surviving spouses should know
The surviving spouses of many deceased veterans may be
missing out on certain survivor benefits from the VA. In fact, millions of
dollars go unclaimed every year because survivors and dependents are simply not
aware of all the benefits available. Here are three the Veterans Assistance
Commission wants you to know about:
1. Survivors Pension
Un-remarried spouses whose loved one served during a period
of combat may be eligible for this. The VA Survivors Pension can provide much
needed financial support for low income surviving spouses who are impoverished
due to medical bills. The VA compares the survivor’s household income and
assets less medical expenses to determine the need per program guidelines.
2. Dependency and Indemnity Compensation
DIC awarded when it is determined by the VA that the veteran
passed as a result of a service-related illness or injury. For example, in 2010
the VA determined Agent Orange significantly contributed to the development of
ischemic heart disease. Survivors of Vietnam veterans who passed prior to 2010
may have no idea of the connection or the eligibility for a VA benefit. In
2008, the VA announced that survivors of veterans who served at least 90 days
of continuous active duty in the U.S. military and later developed amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis (ALS) may be eligible for benefits. More recently, The Blue
Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019, which took effect Jan. 1, 2020,
expanded the potential range for Agent Orange exposure. Now, many whose claims
were previously denied could now be eligible for benefits.
3. Partial reimbursement for burial.
Reimbursement for some funeral expenses may also be
available if it can be shown that the veteran passed due to a service-connected
condition.
Wednesday, February 26, 2020
The Observer Today - Dunkirk, NY - BENEFITS: Veterans deserve added assistance
THE OBSERVER’S VIEW
It was almost
un-American. As young men returned home from fighting in the Vietnam War, they
came back almost as though they were unwelcome.
Many see it as an
injustice that took place some 50 years ago. Today, some of those veterans are
facing another battle — one for benefits that come years after they served
their country overseas.
Last week, U.S. Sen.
Charles Schumer was in Dunkirk to call for the Office of Management and Budget
and the Department of Veterans Affairs, to stop playing games, end the years-long
dispute, and add new conditions to the Agent Orange presumptive conditions
list. “It’s an absolute disgrace to have our government say that you’re not
getting the benefits you’re entitled to caused by your brave service overseas,”
he said, noting 32,000 Western New Yorkers served in the war in the 1960s and
’70s.
Despite some noting
Schumer’s call as pandering, the reality is those who served in Vietnam have
faced health issues for years — some since they returned. All Schumer is
seeking is that these veterans, diagnosed with bladder cancer, hypothyroidism,
hypertension as well as “Parkinson-like symptoms” be eligible for help.
These soldiers gave their
time and service to our country while on foreign ground. This initiative
deserves support.
Texas Panhandle students to travel to Vietnam studying effects of agent orange
AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) -
A purple heart Vietnam veteran shared his memories of Vietnam and the effects
he has seen of agent orange.
“They dumped over 13 million gallons, I think,
of agent orange, in various forests and jungle areas,” said Don Roden,
commander of military purple heart 553 and Vietnam veteran.
Agent orange is a
herbicide that was used in Vietnam by the United States military during the
war. It had two main uses in Vietnam.
“Defoliating the forest that maybe was
concealing the Viet Cong, as well as the North Vietnamese forces. Also, they
went to kill the crops that might be feeding the enemy,” said Roden.
At the time, nobody knew
the lasting effects of this kind of toxin.
“A lot of my buddies have had a lot of health
problems. I’ve had some of them that have died from various cancers. There have
been links to birth defects,” said Roden.
Students from Amarillo
College, West Texas A&M, and Texas Tech, are taking a trip to Vietnam to
further study this toxin.
“We went through multiple
different rounds of where we wanted to go. We finally came up with Vietnam and
the study of agent orange and how it effects multiple generations,” said
Michelle Wittler, STEM student.
Students will be taking
portable equipment to test stagnant water and soil in Vietnam for these toxins
in agent orange.
Thursday, February 20, 2020
AGENT ORANGE TOWN HALL MEETING SCHEDULE
March 14, 2020
Mesa, Arizona
Contact: Chuck Byers
480-258-7105
March 21, 2020
Portland, Oregon
Contact: Steve Carr
503-558-2970
April 25, 2020
Barrington, Rhode Island
Contact: Fran Guevremont
Region 1 Director AVVA
401-374-0573
April 25, 2020
New Ulm, Minnesota
Contact: Rod Mueller
507-276-9206
Maynard Kaderlik
507-581-6402
Carper, Coons press Trump administration for stonewalling veterans suffering from Agent Orange
Sens. Tom Carper and Chris Coons, both D-Delaware, joined 41 Democratic senators in denouncing the Donald Trump administration for blocking
critical benefits to veterans suffering from health conditions associated with
their exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.
The letter specifically called on the administration to stop
denying scientific evidence, and end the years-long delay of adding bladder
cancer, hypothyroidism, parkinsonism and hypertension to the Department of
Veterans Affairs’ list of service-connected presumptive conditions.
“Your
administration’s refusal to add these conditions to the presumptive list
continues to deny more than 190,000 sick and aging veterans the health care and
compensation they have earned and desperately need,” wrote the senators. “More
Since the Agent Orange Act of 1991, VA has established a
presumption of service-connection for 14 diseases associated with Agent Orange
exposure from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine
reports. However, in a recent report required by Congress in the fiscal 2020
appropriations bill, VA called into question the scientific evidence put forth
by the National Academies of Medicine, noting “significant concerns and
limitations” in the findings of NASEM scientists. VA also cited additional
requirements in the Department’s standards for presumptive conditions, delaying
the consideration of care and compensation for thousands of suffering veterans.
V.A. says it is taking action to stem suicides, help Blue Water Navy vets on benefits
NORFOLK, Va. — The numbers are staggering: 20 military
veterans commit suicide every day in America. In 2017, more than 6,100 took
their own lives. The rate of veterans dying at their own hand is 1.5 percent
higher than it is for non-veteran adults.
For the Department of Veterans Affairs, one big challenge is
figuring out what to do about the veterans who are not affiliated with the V.A.
who commit suicide daily. How does the department reach them?
The V.A. is introducing a new program called "Solid
Start." It is designed to help departing active and reserve troops as they
transition to civilian life. It's part of the larger effort to combat suicide
being led by the V.A.'s Under Secretary for Benefit, Dr. Paul Lawrence.
"Two-thirds of the veterans who commit suicide have
never come to the V.A.," he said. "Solid Start is a series of phone
calls in the first year as they transition to civilian life, to begin to
establish the relationship and connect them with the V.A. Don't forget, once
you leave the military, you're a veteran forever. And we want veterans to know
you're welcome at the V.A."
The program is a part of Executive Order 13-822, which aims
to improve mental health care and access to suicide prevention resources to
service members following discharge, separation or retirement from the
military.
An estimated 200,000 veterans each year will be contacted
around 90, 180 and 365 days after leaving service.
The program wants to connect veterans with direct benefits
and partner organizations that can help them in the transition period. Veterans
discharged within the past two months have been automatically signed up.
EPA seeks public input on cleanup plan
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking
input from area residents on how to go about treating hazardous soil on
Middleground Island, near Bay City.
Middleground Island, which is a 175-acre island in the
Saginaw River, has many residential properties, in addition to recreational,
commercial and closed waste disposal properties. Seventeen of the 37
residential properties were found to contain high levels of dioxins in the
soil, which are large family of hazardous chemicals, including furans. A total
of 15 acres are expected to be cleaned up.
"EPA's proposed cleanup will ensure that people living
on Middleground Island are safe when they contact soil in their yard," the
EPA states.
Dioxins are known to cause cancer and other health concerns,
such as skin problems, liver damage, or reproductive issues. According to the
EPA, when people play or work outside, they can accidentally eat small amount
of contaminated dirt or get dirt on their skin, which can cause these problems.
The chemicals are a result of historical industrial
activities, primarily from The Dow Chemical Co.'s Midland plant, which has
operated since the 1890s. Dioxins have been found in and along the
Tittabawassee and Saginaw rivers. Specifically, the dioxins on Middleground
Island are believed to be a result of dredge materials used as fill on the
island from 1973 to 1984.
Tuesday, February 18, 2020
A Legal Lion Lays Down His Gavel With a Ruling of ‘Love, Not Hate’
After 53 years as a federal judge in Brooklyn, Jack B.
Weinstein is retiring. He still has a stubborn belief in the American future.
For more than half a century, Judge Jack B. Weinstein was
the quintessential activist jurist, using his longtime perch on the federal bench
in Brooklyn to champion causes like gun control and school desegregation. In
his career — one of the longest in American legal history — he carved out a
niche as both a liberal hero and, not surprisingly, a bane for conservatives.
Last week, at age 98, Judge Weinstein announced his
retirement, saying he no longer had the stamina to perform his daily duties. In
an interview with The New York Times, he looked back over a tenure so packed
with accolades that his résumé now runs to more than 70 pages. He said his
unremitting hope and faith in the judicial system remained intact even in the
current polarized political climate.
“I’m convinced our
country is bound to equalize, democratize and to save with love, not hate,” he
said.
Born in Kansas in 1921, Judge Weinstein earned his law
degree in 1948 from Columbia University after playing bit parts on Broadway and
serving as a submarine officer in the Pacific theater during World War II.
In his early years as a lawyer, he helped write legal briefs
in the landmark civil rights case Brown v. Board of Education. After he was
named to the bench in 1967 by President Lyndon B. Johnson, he presided over
groundbreaking mass tort cases involving the use of asbestos and the
Vietnam-era defoliant Agent Orange.
At the height of his career, Judge Weinstein, who is known
for his impressive eyebrows and his iconoclastic temperament, handled several
high-profile Mafia cases, including the prosecution of Vincent Gigante, known
as the Chin, the former boss of the Genovese crime family. A stickler for
propriety, Judge Weinstein once ordered the mob don, famous for dressing in his
bathrobe, to shower and spruce up when he came to court.
Senators want defense secretary’s support in adding “Lost 74” sailors to Vietnam Memorial
A group of senators asked the secretary of defense to meet
with them as part of their bipartisan effort to add the names of the “Lost 74”
sailors to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall.
The USS Frank E. Evans, a naval destroyer that had just
completed a combat tour off Vietnam’s coast and was scheduled to return, sank
during a training exercise in June 1969. Seventy-four sailors drowned, and only
one body was recovered. For decades, survivors and families have fought to add
the names of the perished sailors to the iconic granite wall in Washington,
D.C. But the Pentagon opposes the effort since the incident occurred over 100
miles outside the designated Vietnam War theater.
But a dozen senators from both parties sent a letter to
Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Friday asking to meet with him to end the
Pentagon’s resistance.
“The Defense
Department has a mixed, if not negative, record with regards to honoring the
names of those who died in the sinking of the USS Frank E. Evans by adding them
to the Vietnam Memorial Wall,” GOP Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, who
helped lead the effort as a congressman and now as a freshman senator, told the
Washington Examiner. “Bureaucrats and middlemen have stood in the way, offering
excuses each time. We hope to personally convey the Lost 74’s case to Secretary
Esper and gain his support.”
The letter to Esper was signed by six Republican senators —
Cramer, Susan Collins of Maine, Steve Daines of Montana, John Hoeven of North
Dakota, Michael Rounds of South Dakota, and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. Six
Democrats signed on as well: Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Richard
Blumenthal of Connecticut, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York, Maggie Hassan of New
Hampshire, Doug Jones of Alabama, and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire.
“We write to request
a meeting with you to discuss adding the names of the 74 sailors lost aboard
the USS Frank E. Evans on June 3, 1969 to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The
legacy of these brave Americans, the ‘Lost 74,’ should no longer go
unrecognized due to an arbitrary line on a map,” the group told Esper. “Last year
marked 50 years since we lost these 74 sailors. Honoring the sacrifice of these
74 sailors alongside the nearly 60,000 other service members who died in
Vietnam is long overdue.”
Thursday, February 13, 2020
VA’s Dr. Paul Lawrence discusses benefits for Navy vets exposed to Agent Orange
After a long argument, Congress and the Department of
Veterans Affairs opted to grant benefits to Navy veterans whose ship duties
during the Vietnam War might have exposed them to agent orange. The job of
administering benefits fell to the Veterans Benefits Administration. Visiting
Federal Drive with Tom Temin in studio to explain a program that got underway
last month, the VA undersecretary for veterans benefits, Dr. Paul Lawrence.
Interview Transcript:
Dr. Paul Lawrence: The president, on June 25th of last year
signed the Blue Water Navy Act Vietnam Veterans Act to provide Agent Orange
benefits to those folks who had been in the blue waters 12 nautical miles off
the shore of Vietnam during the conflict. So if you’ve been exposed to Agent
Orange and you have some of the conditions, now you can have access to both
health care and benefits. So it resolves a long running dispute. What exactly
was the Republic of Vietnam? The interesting thing about this law was once it
was signed, the Secretary was allowed to stay it, pause it for six months while
we got ready so that we could be ready on January 1st. There was a great deal
of concern that wouldn’t be ready. But we were ready and we began granting on
January 1st. We’ve been doing that now for a little more than six weeks. We’ve
gotten about 18,000 claims. We’ve granted about 1000. You know, survivors
benefits is real important. As you could imagine, a lot of veterans from Vietnam
are older. They may have passed, for conditions perhaps. Their families can
apply for benefits.
Tom Temin: I want to get to some of the issues concerned
with how long ago that was. But before we do, is this anyone who can prove they
were in the Blue Water Navy in ships that carried this material back and forth?
Is that all that’s needed to be able to get these benefits.
Dr. Paul Lawrence: We will find your ship, so the veterans
don’t have to prove they were there. They have to have the conditions, and
they’re listed on our website VA.gov, search blue water. You can find the
conditions. If you have conditions and you were in service off there, your
record shows us where you were. We’ll find the ship you were on. It’s not so much your ships carry the Agent
Orange, it is that it made its way into the water, then the water made its way
onto the ships. That’s the thinking.
Legal Win Is Too Late for Many Who Got Cancer After Nuclear Clean-Up
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — On Christmas Eve, Victor Skaar mailed a
stack of letters to Air Force veterans he had served with in Palomares, Spain,
scrawling a simple headline at the top of each one: “Great News!”
Mr. Skaar, a retired chief master sergeant, was one of 1,600
troops scrambled by the Air Force in 1966 to clean up a classified nuclear
disaster by collecting debris and shoveling up plutonium-laced soil. Many were
later stricken with cancer and other ailments, and tried without success to get
the federal government to take responsibility and pay for their medical care.
He wanted to spread the word about an encouraging
development: A lawsuit he had filed against the Department of Veterans Affairs
had been certified as a class action, meaning that there was finally a chance
to set the plutonium case straight, not just for him but for everyone who was
there.
But his letters soon began trickling back to him:
Undeliverable. No forwarding address. One brought a reply from a widow. Each
one in his mailbox made his heart sink.
“For many of them,
it’s too late,” he said of his comrades. “They’re gone.”
As one of the first cases ever granted class-action status
by the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, the Skaar lawsuit represents a
major step forward for veterans with long-term health issues linked to toxic
exposure in the service.
Veteran groups to Trump: Make VA 'immediately' provide benefits for additional Agent Orange-linked diseases
Thousands of veterans have died or suffered from illnesses
likely caused or worsened by Agent Orange exposure.
Now, after multiple delays from the Department of Veterans
Affairs, veteran service organizations (VSOs) are calling on President Donald
Trump to put an end to the wait.
"The continued delayed action by VA is causing
additional suffering for Vietnam veterans and their families. We urge you to
take action and to end the wait, needless suffering and disappointment for an
entire generation of veterans," VSOs, including Disabled American
Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Vietnam Veterans of America, Military
Officers Association of America, Fleet reserve Association, Paralyzed Veterans
of America and AMVETS, wrote in a letter to the president Monday.
Last year and again just last month, VA Secretary Robert
Wilkie said he planned to delay his decision on adding four illnesses to the
list of diseases VA covers related to exposure to the toxic herbicide. The U.S. sprayed more than 20 million gallons
of multiple herbicides over Vietnam from 1961 to 1971, including Agent Orange.
Wilkie said he and other VA leaders disagreed with
scientists' findings that link Agent Orange exposure to bladder cancer,
hypothyroidism, hypertension and Parkinson’s-like symptoms. He plans to wait
for two more VA studies to conclude and publish before making a decision,
pushing things until late 2020, at the earliest.
Expanding the list of health conditions presumed to be
caused by Agent Orange exposure could provide disability pay and health
benefits to more than 83,000 veterans, to the tune of $15.2 billion, according to VA.
Rise in sulfur dioxide could be sign of mass cremations in Wuhan
Publicly available satellite images from NASA's Fire
Information for Rescue Management System (FIRMS) show dramatically increased
open-air fires during the period of the Wuhan virus outbreak from Jan. 11 to
Feb. 11, versus the month of October, 2019.
The image below shows open-air fires in Wuhan (LAT 30.5, LON
114.6) in October 2019, which precedes the earliest reported cases of the
disease. In this image, a few scattered fires in dark blue signifying a
"fire radiative power" (FRP) of 1 and light blue, signifying an FRP
of 5 can be seen.
There currently are eight registered funeral homes in Wuhan.
If the account of the funeral home staffer is true, this would mean there are
1,628 deaths per day in the city and 34,200 over the past 21 days.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Wars continue to poison
In a recent Chronicle article, “The Poison of war,” I covered the impact of Agent Orange exposure to our veterans during the Vietnam War. It was tremendous to have so many people contact me about the information I provided on our suffering and
America’s delays in responding to our illnesses and those of family members. Nearly all of whom spoke or wrote to me said they had no idea the impact of the poisoning to our military personnel and their families by Agent Orange.
During those conversations, I asked quite a few of them if they knew about the problems of burn pit exposures during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom impacting the health of veterans serving in Afghanistan and Iraq. Nearly every single person did not know about it, or knew very little. Therefore, I decided to write this article to inform everyone about burn pits and how they are impacting the health of today’s veterans.
What is a burn pit? Military sites used open-air fires to destroy their trash at locations in Iraq and Afghanistan, causing smoke and fumes to be inhaled by military personnel in the area at the large pits run by U.S. military and civilian contractors. Joint Base Balad, the largest U.S. base in Iraq and one of hundreds of U.S. bases in Afghanistan and Iraq where trash was burned in open pits for years, had a burn pit operation burning nearly 200 tons of waste per day. The base was churning out three times more garbage than Juneau, Alaska, which had a comparable population. JP4 jet fuel was a favorite trash igniter and it released clouds of benzene, a known carcinogen, while the smoke contamination consisted of plastics, batteries, appliances, medicine, and dead animals.
Senator quizzes VA about delaying Agent Orange decision
WASHINGTON — Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, urged a top Department of Veterans Affairs health official Wednesday to fast-track benefits for Vietnam War veterans suffering from multiple diseases thought to be caused by the chemical herbicide Agent Orange.
After years of indecision, the agency is still wavering on whether to add bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, hypertension and Parkinson’s-like symptoms to the list of conditions presumed to be caused by Agent Orange. Being on the presumptive list lowers the burden of proof for veterans who suffer from the diseases to receive VA benefits.
Richard Stone, executive in charge of the Veterans Health Administration, said in March that he would make a recommendation about the diseases to VA Secretary Robert Wilkie within 90 days. As of Wednesday, Wilkie had not yet decided whether to act on them.
“We have not forgotten,” Brown said. “We find the department’s response deficient. The science is there, and veterans deserve their benefits. You need to move on that.”
‘Ready to help:’ VA asks sick veterans from toxic ‘black goo’ base to come forward
Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie acknowledged publicly Wednesday that service members who deployed to a Uzbekistan base used after the 9/11 attacks may have been exposed to toxic substances, asking for them to come forward to get help.
“Several years ago our soldiers, sailors, airmen in particular started seeing ‘black goo’ come up from the ground. We are working with the Department of Defense to get to the bottom of that,” said Wilkie, who was speaking at the National Press Club and took questions from reporters.
In December, McClatchy exclusively reported that the Pentagon knew about contamination at the Karshi-Khanabad, Uzbekistan base, known as “K2,” before it deployed thousands of forces there. The Pentagon used K2 to launch airstrikes and support operations against al-Qaeda and the Taliban after the 9/11 attacks. Beyond the black goo, which may have been fuels and other solvents, McClatchy also uncovered documents showing that the Pentagon knew the base had been contaminated by enriched uranium and chemical weapons remnants.
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
New list of Agent Orange test and storage sites omits more than 40 previously identified locations
The Department of Defense has released a new list of locations outside Vietnam where herbicides like Agent Orange were tested and stored, a compilation that could provide some veterans proof of exposure needed to support their VA disability claims.
But the list, published Jan. 27 by the Department of Veterans Affairs, omits more than 40 locations previously noted as exposure sites by DoD in 2018 — deletions that could undermine other veterans’ pending claims.
The new DoD list contains nearly 150 testing and storage locations, with updates that include specific dates of release or containment, as well as 26 additions, including places like Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md., Dugway Proving Ground, Utah, and Johnston Atoll in the central Pacific Ocean.
But it deletes or alters at least 50 previously identified locations, removing some dates and omitting testing sites like Hawaii, where the DoD previously said field tests were conducted, Puerto Rico, where herbicides were sprayed in forests between 1956 and 1967, and locations in Korea where components were stored.
And while the new list contains six locations in Thailand, it adds a new clarification to those locations’ descriptions: “No herbicide was sprayed in Thailand.”
EXCLUSIVE: Families and workers affected by Agent Orange herbicides seek compensation
Please note, this story contains the names and images of people who have died.
A compensation scheme is being requested from the Western Australian Government today for families affected by workers exposed to Agent Orange herbicides used by the Agricultural Protection Board (APB) in the 1970s and 1980s.
The National Suicide Prevention and Trauma Recovery Project (NSPTRP) launched the campaign this morning, calling for the McGowan Government to set up a dedicated fund for families, spouses and individuals still caring for those who were exposed to the herbicide as well as relatives of deceased former workers.
“We are dealing with people affected by the herbicides. The Geoff Gallop Government acknowledged that there was increased likelihood of cancers to exposed APB workers from the Agent Orange akin herbicides,” said Megan Krakouer, Director of the NSPTRP.
Strides in Vietnam – US relations
NDO – Although 25 years is not a long time in the history of the bilateral diplomatic relationship, Vietnam and the US have gained substantial results in cooperation, which have impressed the international community. Overcoming the difficult times after the war, the two countries have become reliable partners based on equality and mutual respect.
Vietnam and the US are implementing activities to celebrate the 25th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations (1995-2020). At the launching ceremony recently held in Washington DC, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Ha Kim Ngoc stressed that, 25 years after the establishment of diplomatic ties and seven years after the establishment of their comprehensive partnership, Vietnam-US relations have seen robust development in many key areas of cooperation, ranging from politics-diplomacy, economy-trade-investment, science-technology, education-training, and settlement of post-war consequences to defence-security, locality-to-locality relations, and people-to-people exchanges.
Leaders of the two countries have regularly exchanged visits with commitments to respect each other’s independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and political regimes. Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc was the first leader of an ASEAN country to visit the US after US President Donald Trump took office, while President Trump was the first US President to visit Vietnam twice during his tenure.
VA Eliminates Max Loan Limits For Veterans
VA loans are a godsend for veterans looking to buy a house. Between not having to pay a down payment, the low interest rates, and the lack of mortgage interest, these loans offer just about the best terms around. The one downside to VA loans has been the loan limits. But that’s no longer a problem.
As of January 1, 2020, the VA has removed the maximum limit on home prices as part of The Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act. Previously, the limit, which was set by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) and which was subject to an annual adjustment, was $484,350 for most of the country. That meant that if a home was over the limit, the buyer was subject to a down payment. That cash down payment had to be “enough to cover 25% of the difference between the purchase price and the FHA limit,” said Military.com.
With the limit removed, military buyers can now purchase a home at any price without having to come up with a down payment. “This is good news for borrowers in high-priced metros,” said The Mortgage Reports. “Previously, veterans buying in areas like New York, Los Angeles, D.C., and Seattle, were at risk of exceeding zero-down VA loan limits.”
However, because the VA doesn’t lend the funds itself, there still may be a limit imposed by the lending institution. “The lender may still issue a cap and deny a large loan. But the denial won’t be due to VA home loan rules.”
Sunday, February 2, 2020
Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea culpa
Some of you have noticed that AOZ is back on the air after
several weeks of running dark.
Some others of you are wondering why in the Hell you received
an email from the Agent Orange Zone.
My sincere apologies to all of you.
In the transition, to the new look,the mail list fell into the SNAFU basket.
To the first group, stick around, I’m making some changes
after nearly 11 years with the same marquee. As you can probably tell, the new
look is “in progress.” Please bear with me.
To those in the second group, please UNSUBSCRIBE if you
like, no offense taken.
If you like what you see, or you have a friend or
neighbor who is a Vietnam Veteran who is ill, or whose grandchildren are sick, please forward this to him or
her.
Thank you all for your patience and understanding.
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Two extremely important VA Forms (VBA-21-0845-ARE.pdf and VA
40-1007.pdf), that all veterans should fill in and submit to VA, asap.
If you don't, your beneficiary will not be able to talk to
the VA - (Authorization to Disclose Personal Information to a Third Party).
And, secondly, the APPLICATION FOR PRE-NEED DETERMINATION OF
ELIGIBILITY FOR BURIAL IN A VA NATIONAL CEMETERY. This will save your survivors
some of the red tape/hassle.
What are the obstacles to Bayer settling Roundup lawsuits?
(Reuters) - Bayer AG is in mediation to
potentially settle thousands of U.S. lawsuits claiming that the company’s
Roundup weed killer causes cancer, but some legal experts said the cases raises
novel questions that may prevent an easy settlement.
More than 42,700 plaintiffs claim Roundup causes a type of
cancer called non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
Bayer to date has lost three U.S. jury trials in the Roundup
litigation. The company is appealing or has vowed to appeal the decisions,
saying Roundup and its active ingredient glyphosate are not carcinogenic
Legal experts outlined several obstacles the parties may
face on the path towards settlement.
WHY IS THE ROUNDUP LITIGATION DIFFERENT FROM OTHER PRODUCT
CASES?
Settlements involving drugs, medical devices or consumer
goods often result in the addition of a warning label, a recall or the outright
discontinuance of a product. Those steps generally close the door to future
lawsuits, making settlement costs and risks predictable.
Bayer has never publicly considered pulling Roundup off the
market. The company in June announced a $5.6 billion investment to research and
develop a glyphosate alternative.