Vietnam War veterans suffering from diabetes are now eligible for compensation and health care for their presumptive exposure to the defoliant Agent Orange, according to a Department of Veterans Affairs decision fought for by the 2.8 million member American Legion.
On Nov. 9th, 27 days after American Legion National Commander Ray G. Smith formally petitioned VA to add Type 2 diabetes to a host of illnesses presumed to be service-connected due to Agent Orange exposure, Acting VA Secretary Hershel Gober announced approval of the awarding of benefits. The government’s’s response to The American Legion’s recommendation will help hundreds of thousands of ailing veterans. The VA’s decision was based on a National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine report released Oct. 11 that suggested an association between adult-onset diabetes and exposure to dioxin, a by-product contained in herbicides used in Vietnam.
"This is the American way! This change in the treatment of veterans suffering from Agent Orange-related diabetes is consistent with the highest traditions of Veterans Day," Smith said. "Veterans Day is not only a time to pause and reflect, in public commemoration, on the contributions of those who served in our nation’s armed forces, it is a time for the American people, through their government, to rededicate themselves to caring for those who sacrificed for freedom - especially those who were irreparably scarred because they willingly stood in harm’s way."
Commander Smith went on to say, "The American people’s moral covenant with veterans is reflected also in tangible tributes to veterans’ sacrifice, such as the new "Honoring Veterans" stamp and the National World War II Memorial. I will be honored this Veterans Day to these health problems, but have thus far not identified a unique "Gulf War Syndrome," or determined how these conditions may be linked to experiences in the Gulf War. The Kansas study, reported in the November 15 issue
of The American Journal of Epidemiology, identified a pattern of symptoms strongly associated with Gulf War service. "Individually, these symptoms can resemble the kinds of health problems we’d see in any group of adults," said Dr. steele. "What is different in Gulf War veterans is the pattern in which these symptoms occur - a pattern of multiple different types of symptoms together, symptoms which first began during or after the Gulf War, and often persist for years. We used ‘Gulf War Illness’ as an umbrella term for these overlapping problems, since symptoms can vary from person to person."
For more information, contact:
Dr. Lea Steele
Kansas Persian Gulf War Veterans Health Initiative Program
Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs
Telephone: 785-296-7455