Veterans Not Covered by Toxic Hazards Legislation Wait Decades for VA Recognition, Report Finds
Sheeting covers rubble from demolished barracks at Fort Ord.
Labeled with asbestos and lead warnings, sheeting covers rubble from demolished barracks at Fort Ord on Thursday, April 29, 2021, in Fort Ord, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
Military.com | By Patricia Kime
Published September 20, 2024 at 4:55pm ET
The passage of the PACT Act gave millions of veterans the chance at expedited disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs, but thousands of others exposed to environmental hazards in military service wait roughly 31 years to receive similar recognition from the VA, a new report has found.
In a report released Wednesday by Disabled American Veterans and the Military Officers Association of America, the groups said the VA's disability claims filing process -- in which veterans must prove that their health conditions are directly related to military service -- is cumbersome for those who are unaware that they were exposed to toxic substances or those who don't connect a latent illness with their military service.
In "Ending the Wait for Toxic-Exposed Veterans," retired Army Lt. Col. Gary Sauer said he knew he had musculoskeletal injuries from jumping out of military aircraft but initially did not connect two illnesses -- non-Hodgkin lymphoma and a rare kidney disease -- with military service.
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2024/09/20/veterans-not-covered-toxic-hazards-legislation-wait-decades-va-recognition-report-finds.html
