On Jan. 1, 2020, the Blue Water Navy (BWN) Vietnam Veterans Act went into law, supporting Veterans who may be eligible for benefits based on presumption of herbicide exposure. One year later, VA reflects on its progress.
Granting benefits
As of Nov. 30, 2020, VA has processed
39,061 of 75,205 claims received. Of those, 27,366 were granted – awarding more
than $724 million in retroactive benefits. The most common granted claims
included medical conditions diabetes, malignant growth of the lung, coronary
bypass surgery, malignant growths of genitourinary system and coronary artery
disease.
In addition, the law provides
benefits for children born with certain health conditions whose parent was a
Veteran with verified herbicide exposure while serving in Thailand.
Eligibility
The law affects Veterans who
served on vessels operating not more than 12 nautical miles seaward from the
demarcation line of the waters of Vietnam and Cambodia, as defined in Public
Law 116-23 . Veterans, their dependents, and survivors who meet this
criteria can apply for these approved benefits.
Veterans – and survivors of
deceased Veterans – who served in or near the Korean Demilitarized Zone from
Sept. 1, 1967, to Aug. 31, 1971, can apply for benefits.
Increasing accessibility
To help implement the law, VA
collaborated with the National
Archives and Records Administration to digitize all Navy and Coast
Guard deck logs for ships with known Vietnam service. Digitization of the Navy
deck logs was completed in December 2019; Coast Guard deck logs were completed
in September 2020. As part of the agreement, VA provided digital images of the
deck logs to NARA to make them digitally available in the National Archives Catalog. Veterans may
contact inquire@nara.gov if the deck log they are seeking is not
available in the National Archives Catalog.
Learn more about Agent
Orange exposure and VA disability compensation or call 800-827-1000
for more information.
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