The Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission is alerting local veterans of a change in the Veteran Administration’s position on benefits for military members exposed to contaminants in the water supply at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

“The VA is finally starting to right the wrong for the many veterans who served at Camp Lejeune during the 30 years that the drinking water supply was found to be poisoned,” said Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission Superintendent Jacob A. Zimmerman. “If you are a veteran or know a veteran who was at Camp Lejeune and who suffers from an illness that might be related to the contaminated drinking water there, I encourage you to contact our office so that we can get the paperwork filed for a disability claim with the VA.  There is no cost to do this.”

The presumptive illnesses apply to active duty, reserve and National Guard members who served for no less than 30 days at Camp Lejeune between Aug. 1, 1953 and Dec. 31, 1987, and are diagnosed with the following conditions:

• adult leukemia
• aplastic anemia and other myelodysplastic syndromes
• bladder cancer
• kidney cancer
• liver cancer
• multiple myeloma
• non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Parkinson’s disease

“We have a responsibility to take care of those who have served our nation and have been exposed to harm as a result of that service,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald. “Establishing a presumption for service at Camp Lejeune will make it easier for those veterans to receive the care and benefits they deserve.”

Environmental health experts on VA’s Technical Workgroup conducted comprehensive reviews of scientific evidence, which included analysis and research done by the Department of Health and Human Service’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Environmental Protection Agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the National Toxicology Program and the National Academies of Science.

Military members with records of service showing no less than 30 days of service, either concurrent or cumulative, at Camp Lejeune during the contamination period can already be granted Veteran status for medical benefits, following passage of the Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012.

In the early 1980s, volatile organic compounds, trichloroethylene, a metal degreaser, and perchloroethylene, a dry cleaning agent, as well as benzene, and vinyl chloride were discovered in two on-base water supply systems at Camp Lejeune. These systems served the housing, administrative, and recreational facilities, as well as the base hospital. The contaminated wells supplying the water systems were shut down in February 1985.

VA acknowledges that current science establishes a link between exposure to certain chemicals found in the water supply at Camp Lejeune and later development of one of the proposed presumptive conditions.  However, VA experts agree that there is no scientific underpinning to support a specific minimum exposure level for any of the conditions.  Therefore, VA welcomes comments on the 30-day minimum exposure requirement and will consider other practical alternatives when drafting the final rule.

VA also notes that the proposed 30-day requirement serves to establish eligibility for service connection on a presumptive basis; nothing in this proposed regulation prohibits consideration of service connection on a non-presumptive basis. The 30-day public comment period on the proposed rule is open until Oct.10, 2016.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs news release, Veterans Assistance Commission of Kane County

About the Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission

The Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission exists to help veterans access the benefits they earned for serving our great nation. Whether you are looking to apply for health care, dental insurance, disability compensation, home loan, GI Bill, or state benefits — the KCVAC office can help! Don’t try to navigate the benefits bureaucracy alone: Veterans Assistance Commission help is free! For more information, visit the Veterans Assistance Commission web page, “Like” the Kane County Veterans Assistance Commission Facebook page and sign up for the Veterans Assistance Commission newsletter.