Wednesday, July 22, 2020

House lawmakers weigh efforts to help burn pit-exposed vets, cut Agent Orange benefits expansion

House lawmakers passed several amendments into the annual defense spending bill aimed at helping veterans exposed to toxic burn pits during service. But they also removed a measure that would have expanded benefits for veterans exposed to Agent Orange who have bladder cancer, hypothyroidism and Parkinson's.
House lawmakers voted on packages of hundreds of amendments proposed for the National Defense Authorization Act, a must-pass omnibus annual bill that sets the budget, and some policy, for the Defense Department. Since the bill is one of those all but guaranteed to pass in recent years, it's prime real estate for major military and veterans legislation, including on toxic exposure.
Veterans exposed to toxic burn pits during service got several nods in the bill, while veterans exposed to Agent Orange were nixed.

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