Last week, Rep. Joe Courtney(D), (CT-2), called for congressional
action to help so-called blue water Navy veterans — those who served in
territorial waters overseas during the Vietnam War, and who may suffer
illnesses linked to exposure to Agent Orange.
That these veterans lack full Veterans Administration coverage for
these illnesses is a national disgrace, and Congress can and should act swiftly
to remedy the situation.
The VA presumes that any veteran who served on land or in Vietnam’s
inland waters was exposed toAgent Orange, the toxic herbicide used for a decade during the war.
Those veterans are compensated for any of a bevy of illnesses associated with
and presumed linked to exposure, including diabetes, cancer and Parkinson’s
disease.
Blue water vets, however, are excluded; the VA maintains there is no
scientific basis or legal justification to cover them. But advocates say Agent
Orange — which contains dioxin, a potent toxin — ran off into the sea where it
was sucked up and distilled by Navy vessels and used for drinking, bathing and
laundry. The distillation process only concentrated the dioxin.
The Agent Orange Act of 1991
originally covered blue water veterans, but the VA changed its interpretation
in 2002 to exclude them. That decision withstood a 2008 court challenge, and in
April, an appeals court ordered the VA to review the policy. But earlier this
month, the administration announced it had decided to maintain its policy
limiting blue water veterans’ coverage.
One of the bases of the VA’s position is a 2011 Institute of Medicine
report which did not find sufficient evidence to support extending presumption
of exposure to the offshore Navy vets. Incidentally, that report also
identified plausible pathways by which Agent Orange could have traveled to sea
and into ships’ distillation systems.
In other words, there isn’t a scientific guarantee that blue water
veterans were exposed to Agent Orange, but there a credible possibility. In our
view, when it comes to veterans’ well-being, the VA ought to be erring on the
side of caution — not excluding some because absolute scientific certainty
isn’t there.
Those who served the country in the armed forces deserve the benefit
of the doubt.
That’s our opinion. What’s yours? Email letters@norwichbulletin.com.
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