FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act, which passed today and when signed into law by the President, will add three Agent Orange-related diseases--bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and Parkinsonism to the Department of Veterans Affairs list of conditions linked to herbicide exposure in Vietnam and elsewhere.
WASHINGTON
― House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith said he believes it’s
still possible President Donald Trump would veto the annual defense policy bill
but warned it “would be a huge political mistake.”
The
House and Senate versions (which were reconciled Wednesday after months of
negotiations) initially passed by veto-proof majorities, and Smith predicted
that Republicans would vote to override in the event of a veto. Beyond the
bill’s role in setting military personnel and acquisition policy, and securing
a pay raise for troops, Smith touted its inclusion of new benefits for veterans exposed to Agent Orange.
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