When the sailor first applied in 2010 for benefits for ischemic heart disease due to AO exposure, the response was typical: The VA said no because he’d been on a carrier out at sea. He continued to appeal. And appeal. And appeal.
The VA finally told him to either go away or go
to court. Naturally he chose court and got an attorney. The VA was
ordered to take another look at the facts and finally decided that 100
percent disability for ischemic heart disease due to AO exposure was
appropriate, backdated to when symptoms first appeared, many years
earlier.
If you were on a ship near Vietnam, the questions
to consider are: If you were assigned to a ship and were flown out to
it, where had the plane been? Was the plane contaminated and bringing AO
every time it landed on a carrier? Did you unload cargo from those
planes or work on them? Did the ship ever bring on fresh fruits and
vegetables? Did the ship ever dock? Did it take on water for
distillation inside the 12-mile limit? Did your mail and supplies sit on
the runway near the AO storage area in Da Nang?
Meanwhile, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans
Act (HR-969) was recently introduced in the House of Representatives.
The legislation will give AO presumptives to sailors and Marines who
served in offshore waters of Vietnam.
If you’re fighting the VA, go online to The
Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program [www.vetsprobono.org]. You can hook
up with a specially trained attorney – for free – who will take your
case. You’ll pay nothing unless you win back entitlement.
No comments:
Post a Comment