Sidath Viranga Panangala
Specialist in Veterans Policy
Douglas Reid Weimer
Legislative Attorney
Since the 1970s, Vietnam-era veterans have attributed certain medical illnesses, disabilities, and birth defects to exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides sprayed by the U.S. Air Force to destroy enemy crops and remove forest cover. During the last 30 years, Agent Orange legislation has established and updated the health and disability benefits of Vietnam veterans exposed to herbicides.
Several laws were enacted by Congress to provide health care services to Vietnam veterans. The Veterans’ Health Care, Training and Small Business Loan Act (P.L. 97-72) elevated Vietnam veterans’ priority status for health care at Department of Veterans Affairs facilities by recognizing a veteran’s own report of exposure as sufficient proof to receive medical care unless there was evidence to the contrary. The Veterans’ Health Care Eligibility Reform Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-262) completely restructured the VA medical care eligibility requirements for all veterans. Under P.L. 104-262, a veteran does not have to demonstrate a link between a certain health condition and exposure to Agent Orange; instead, medical care is provided unless the VA has determined that the condition did not result from exposure to Agent Orange.
Likewise, Congress passed several measures to address disability compensation issues of Vietnam veterans. The Veterans’ Dioxin and Radiation Exposure Compensation Standards Act of 1984 (P.L. 98-542) required the VA to develop regulations for disability compensation to Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange. In 1991, the Agent Orange Act (P.L. 102-4) established for the first time a process for establishing presumption of service connection for diseases associated with herbicide exposure. P.L. 102-4 authorized the VA to contract with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct scientific reviews of the evidence linking certain medical conditions to herbicide exposure. Under this law, the VA is required to review the reports of the IOM and issue regulations, establishing a presumption of service connection for any disease for which there is scientific evidence of a positive association with herbicide exposure. Based on these IOM reports, currently 14 health conditions are presumptively service-connected, including B-cell leukemias, Parkinson’s disease, and ischemic heart disease.
Navy veterans of the Vietnam Era (those who served in Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975), who served offshore and were never physically present on Vietnamese soil, have been contesting the presumption of service connection for Agent Orange disability benefits. In 2006, the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) ruled in Haas v. Nicholson that navy veterans who served offshore during the Vietnam Era were entitled to a presumption of exposure to Agent Orange. On May 8, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“the court”) issued a decision reversing the CAVC’s decision. On June 23, 2008, the attorneys for Haas filed a petition with the court for a panel rehearing or a rehearing en banc (that is, the whole panel of judges of the court). On October 9, 2008, the court denied the petition. Following this action, Haas petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari (asking the Supreme Court to review the decision of a lower court). On January 21, 2009, the Supreme Court denied the petition for writ of certiorari. A subsequent related proceeding, Haas v. Shinseki, on remand from the court, involved the same plaintiff and the same factual situation. On March 10, 2009, the court examined the BVA’s decision, vacated that decision, and remanded the claim for further proceedings with the BVA. The Agent Orange Equity Act of 2009 (H.R. 2254), if enacted, would clarify service in Vietnam to include inland waterways, the waters offshore, and airspace above Vietnam. Under H.R. 2254, those who have been awarded the Vietnam Service Medal or the Vietnam Campaign Medal would also be eligible for disability compensation based on presumptive disease conditions relating to exposure to Agent Orange.
Date of Report: September 22, 2010
Number of Pages: 16
Order Number: RL34370
Price: $29.95
Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports
Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.
Specialist in Veterans Policy
Douglas Reid Weimer
Legislative Attorney
Since the 1970s, Vietnam-era veterans have attributed certain medical illnesses, disabilities, and birth defects to exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides sprayed by the U.S. Air Force to destroy enemy crops and remove forest cover. During the last 30 years, Agent Orange legislation has established and updated the health and disability benefits of Vietnam veterans exposed to herbicides.
Several laws were enacted by Congress to provide health care services to Vietnam veterans. The Veterans’ Health Care, Training and Small Business Loan Act (P.L. 97-72) elevated Vietnam veterans’ priority status for health care at Department of Veterans Affairs facilities by recognizing a veteran’s own report of exposure as sufficient proof to receive medical care unless there was evidence to the contrary. The Veterans’ Health Care Eligibility Reform Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-262) completely restructured the VA medical care eligibility requirements for all veterans. Under P.L. 104-262, a veteran does not have to demonstrate a link between a certain health condition and exposure to Agent Orange; instead, medical care is provided unless the VA has determined that the condition did not result from exposure to Agent Orange.
Likewise, Congress passed several measures to address disability compensation issues of Vietnam veterans. The Veterans’ Dioxin and Radiation Exposure Compensation Standards Act of 1984 (P.L. 98-542) required the VA to develop regulations for disability compensation to Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange. In 1991, the Agent Orange Act (P.L. 102-4) established for the first time a process for establishing presumption of service connection for diseases associated with herbicide exposure. P.L. 102-4 authorized the VA to contract with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to conduct scientific reviews of the evidence linking certain medical conditions to herbicide exposure. Under this law, the VA is required to review the reports of the IOM and issue regulations, establishing a presumption of service connection for any disease for which there is scientific evidence of a positive association with herbicide exposure. Based on these IOM reports, currently 14 health conditions are presumptively service-connected, including B-cell leukemias, Parkinson’s disease, and ischemic heart disease.
Navy veterans of the Vietnam Era (those who served in Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975), who served offshore and were never physically present on Vietnamese soil, have been contesting the presumption of service connection for Agent Orange disability benefits. In 2006, the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) ruled in Haas v. Nicholson that navy veterans who served offshore during the Vietnam Era were entitled to a presumption of exposure to Agent Orange. On May 8, 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“the court”) issued a decision reversing the CAVC’s decision. On June 23, 2008, the attorneys for Haas filed a petition with the court for a panel rehearing or a rehearing en banc (that is, the whole panel of judges of the court). On October 9, 2008, the court denied the petition. Following this action, Haas petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for certiorari (asking the Supreme Court to review the decision of a lower court). On January 21, 2009, the Supreme Court denied the petition for writ of certiorari. A subsequent related proceeding, Haas v. Shinseki, on remand from the court, involved the same plaintiff and the same factual situation. On March 10, 2009, the court examined the BVA’s decision, vacated that decision, and remanded the claim for further proceedings with the BVA. The Agent Orange Equity Act of 2009 (H.R. 2254), if enacted, would clarify service in Vietnam to include inland waterways, the waters offshore, and airspace above Vietnam. Under H.R. 2254, those who have been awarded the Vietnam Service Medal or the Vietnam Campaign Medal would also be eligible for disability compensation based on presumptive disease conditions relating to exposure to Agent Orange.
Date of Report: September 22, 2010
Number of Pages: 16
Order Number: RL34370
Price: $29.95
Follow us on TWITTER at http://www.twitter.com/alertsPHP or #CRSreports
Document available via e-mail as a pdf file or in paper form.
To order, e-mail Penny Hill Press or call us at 301-253-0881. Provide a Visa, MasterCard, American Express, or Discover card number, expiration date, and name on the card. Indicate whether you want e-mail or postal delivery. Phone orders are preferred and receive priority processing.
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