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More Agent Orange vets to benefit
A Vietnam veteran
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TEXT OF STORY
Kai Ryssdal: The Vietnam War has been over for 25 years, but its legacy lives on in so many ways. The Veterans Administration said today it plans to expand the list of illnesses that it recognizes as having been caused by exposure to Agent Orange. That's the defoliant used heavily in Vietnam back in the 1960s. Today's decision means that Vietnam vets who suffer from Parkinson's and certain forms of heart disease and Leukemia will be eligible for government benefits. Marketplace's John Dimsdale reports now from Washington.
JOHN DIMSDALE: Some two million U.S. soldiers were exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam and the department estimates as many as 200,000 are likely to seek government-provided medical treatment for the newly approved diseases.
Tammy Duckworth, the assistant secretary of Veterans Affairs, says the department doesn't consider the cost.
TAMMY DUCKWORTH: If we're going to err, we're going to err on the side of the veteran, not the bureaucracy.
Vietnam veterans like Chris Russell of Fayetteville, N.C., praise the new policy. He contracted lung cancer from exposure to Agent Orange in 1970. And he says now, many of his colleagues suffering from Parkinsons, heart disease, and leukemia can afford treatment.
CHRIS RUSSELL: The fact that all these guys that have those types of cancers can now receive benefits, it's just fantastic. I can't salute it enough.
This reflects an improved attitude by the VA towards medical treatment, says John Rowan, the president of Vietnam Veterans of America.
JOHN ROWAN: It's just the nature of modern warfare today that unfortunately toxic exposures may end up doing more damage than bombs and bullets.
Rowan points to another case last week, when the Veterans Affairs Department reversed policy. It will now examine about 1,000 Iraqi vets who may have been exposed to a deadly chemical at a water treatment facility six years ago. The operator, KBR, said its contract with the government did not require environmental monitoring, nor did it provide for protective equipment. Several soldiers have filed lawsuits against KBR. Senate Democrats have urged the VA to monitor their health for service-related illnesses.
In Washington, I'm John Dimsdale for Marketplace.
My brother - in-law is suffering from prostate cancer, kidney disease, & a number of other illnesses and he did not serve in Viet Nam but did drive ambulances hauling hundreds to medical facilities and he said he can never forget the smells and is wondering if his exposure to all the injured soldiers could possibly infect him. I know when a cancer patient takes chemo they tell you , not to be in the same room with it, as it can absorb into your skin and blood stream. Does anyone know or ever heard of this happening to someone else . He goes to a Va Hospital and they say he has all the symptoms of Agent Orange. Please, reply if you choose too. Thank you, Clara Allen
"TAMMY DUCKWORTH: If we're going to err, we're going to err on the side of the veteran, not the bureaucracy."
Please just say past administrations hoped the problems would die off and it took you ten plus years to even acknowledge this problem. The VA has done a poor job in the past but it's changing. When you say sorry it lets people know that you're going to try and not repeat history.
I served in Dong Ha 1969-70 and 7 years ago I had a heart attack and 3 years ago prostate cancer and over the last 3 years I developed a twitch or also called a hemifacial spasm. The VA has tried drugs, accupunture and botox to stop the twitch...nothing works and now my face is becoming disfigured and my left eye is closing. I'm rated 100% for the prostate cancer but eventually they will drop my rating to 20% to 60% when it is in remission? Reoccurence is likely according to other sources. Is there anyone out there with a twitch?
Thanks
My husband was soaked in Agent Orange while in Viet Nam 1964-65, and has been severely allergic to food routinely defoliated at harvest --the worst offender being corn and all the products then made from it-- corn oil, corn syrup, corn meal, hydrolyzed corn protein --you get the idea. He is not alone.
