VA Secretary David Shulkin suggests he favors expansion of Agent Orange-related health care and disability compensation to new categories of ailing veterans but that factors like cost, medical science and politics still stand in the way.
Shulkin told the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee on Wednesday that he made recommendations to White House budget officials last year on whether to add up to four more conditions — bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, Parkinson-like tremors and hypertension (high blood pressure) — to the VA list of 14 illnesses presumed caused by exposure to herbicides used during the Vietnam War.
“I have transmitted my recommendations to the (White House’s) Office of Management and Budget. I did that by Nov. 1st,” Shulkin said. “And we are in the process right now of going through this data. In fact, we met with (OMB officials) on Monday. They asked for some additional data to be able to work through the process and be able to get financial estimates for this. So, we are committed to working with OMB to get this resolved in the very near future.”
Shulkin didn’t say which of the four conditions, if any, he wants added to the presumptive list if and when cleared by the White House.
At the same hearing, the VA chief was asked his position on Blue Water Navy veterans of the Vietnam War who also suffer from illnesses on the VA presumptive list but aren’t eligible to use it to facilitate claims for care and compensation.
They “have waited too long for this,” Shulkin agreed, but then suggested the solution for those veterans is blocked by medical evidence or swings on the will of the Congress.
“I would like to try to find a way where we can resolve that issue for them rather than make them continue to wait,” Shulkin said. “I do not believe there will be scientific data (to) give us a clear answer like we do have on the Agent Orange presumptive” list for veterans who had served in-country. “For the Blue Water Navy ... epidemiologic studies just aren’t available from everything I can see. So, we’re going to have sit down and do what we think is right for these veterans.”
Vietnam veterans who served even a day in country who have illnesses on the presumptive list can quality for VA medical care and disability compensation without having to show other evidence that their ailments are service connected.
Shulkin said VA “recently” received the last report of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM), which found a stronger scientific association than earlier studies between certain ailments and herbicide exposure. In fact, however, VA has had the that report, Veterans and Agent Orange: Update 2014, for two years.
It was written by a committee of medical experts that reviewed medical and scientific literature on select ailments and herbicide exposure published from Oct. 1, 2012, through Sept. 30, 2014. Released in March 2016, the report found evidence to support raising the strength of association between herbicide exposure and bladder cancer and hypothyroidism. The report upgrades the link from “inadequate or insufficient” evidence to “limited or suggestive” evidence of an association.
In years past VA decided that for some ailments, such as Parkinson’s and ischemic heart disease, “limited or suggestive evidence” was enough to add these illnesses to the Agent Orange presumptive list. For others, including hypertension, a more common disease of aging, VA deemed it wasn’t enough.
This last NAM report, however, looked again at cardiovascular conditions and herbicide exposure. It didn’t upgrade the link to heart ailments but it did affirm limited or suggestive evidence that hypertension is linked to herbicide exposure.
It also studied whether Parkinson’s-like symptoms should fall into the same limited or suggestive category as Parkinson’s disease itself. The 2016 report found “no rational basis” to continue to exclude Parkinson-like symptoms from the same risk category. Parkinson’s disease itself was added to presumptive list in 2010.
VA secretaries under both the Obama and Trump administration reacted more slowly on the last NAM perhaps, by law, they could. Congress in 2015 let a portion of the Agent Orange law expire, language that required the VA Secretary to decide on new presumptive conditions within 180 days of accepting a NAM report.
The impact was immediate. Although a senior VA official tasked with reviewing this last NAM report said then-VA Secretary Bob McDonald would make his decisions within three months, it didn’t happen. McDonald left it to his successor. Shulkin waited more months and, in July 2017, vowed to decide by Nov. 1. OMB blocked an announcement, however, presumably over projected costs.
Cost also has been a factor in Congress not passing legislation to extend VA benefits to Blue Water Navy veterans diagnosed with illnesses on the presumptive list. Budget analysts a few years ago estimated a cost of $1.1 billion over 10 years.
Also, NAM did conduct a review of medical and scientific evidence regarding Blue Water Veterans’ possible exposure to herbicides and concluded in a May 2011 report that “there was not enough information ... to determine whether Blue Water Navy personnel were or were not exposed to Agent Orange.”
Blue Water Veterans remain ineligible to use the Agent Orange presumptive list. A lone exception is granted for veterans with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
In every session of Congress going back years, Blue Water Navy bills have been introduced. They would, if passed, “include as part of the Republic of Vietnam its territorial seas for purposes of the presumption of service connection for diseases associated with exposure (to) herbicide agents while in Vietnam.”
The current House version of the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act (HR 299), introduced in January 2017 by Rep. David Valado, R-Georgia, has 327 co-sponsors. Yet prospects of passage remain dim. Valado reminded Shulkin at a mid-March hearing of the House Veterans Affairs Committee that six months ago Shulkin said he was seeking more recommendations from “subject matter experts” on the issue and would be ready to update Congress in the coming months.
“Have you come to a decision on Blue Water Navy veterans?”
“I am aligned with you that these veterans have waited too long,” Shulkin said, “and this is a responsibility that this country has. And, as our veterans get older, it’s unfair. ... I believe it is imperative upon us to resolve this issue.
“I also believe,” Shulkin continued, “that there will not be strong scientific data to help resolve this,” in other words to justify benefit expansion. “This is going to be an obligation that we feel as a country, that these veterans shouldn’t be waiting any longer. And I am on the side of trying to find a way to resolve this for the Blue Water Navy veterans.”
LINK
Showing posts with label VA Disability. Show all posts
Showing posts with label VA Disability. Show all posts
Sunday, March 25, 2018
Monday, June 12, 2017
And So it Begins.......
Hi gang-
We had a rough couple of weeks dealing with securing Dom's Chemo medication, but we're all set now.
He took his first dose of Revlimid this morning.
Will be getting his Velcade shots on Tuesdays and Fridays.... 2 weeks on- 1 week off.
Daughter Christine just booked a flight for our "off week". Yippee.
Apparently, the VA is "farming out" patients to private practice doctors. At the end of this month, we'll head to Pascagoula, MS for our VA Disability Claim. The alternative was a doctor in NOLA. NO THANKS!
So....it's all falling into place! Thanks for the prayers and calls!
We had a rough couple of weeks dealing with securing Dom's Chemo medication, but we're all set now.
He took his first dose of Revlimid this morning.
Will be getting his Velcade shots on Tuesdays and Fridays.... 2 weeks on- 1 week off.
Daughter Christine just booked a flight for our "off week". Yippee.
Apparently, the VA is "farming out" patients to private practice doctors. At the end of this month, we'll head to Pascagoula, MS for our VA Disability Claim. The alternative was a doctor in NOLA. NO THANKS!
So....it's all falling into place! Thanks for the prayers and calls!
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Our Progress Report- So Far So Good
We've had a busy couple of weeks. Today Dom completed his 5th radiation treatment on his left hip. Only 5 more to go.
We're meeting with a gal at the Slidell Cancer Center on Monday to discuss medications and insurance.
His last radiation treatment will be next Tuesday, then we have an entire, much needed, week off.
Meeting with his Slidell Oncologist on June 1st, where we'll learn about his Chemotherapy schedule.
After radiation this morning, we dropped off the oncologist's letter stating that his cancer had returned to our local Veterans Services Officer. She's a doll...the same gal that took care of us in '08. She felt confident that he'll receive 100% disability from the VA. They'll be in touch to set up an appointment with one of their doctors. I just hope that it happens AFTER we get more information on June 1st.
So- Things are happening very quickly. Our patient looks and feels great, although the radiation is starting to bother his hip. (nerves have become effected from the radiation)
Thank you for your continued prayers!
We're meeting with a gal at the Slidell Cancer Center on Monday to discuss medications and insurance.
His last radiation treatment will be next Tuesday, then we have an entire, much needed, week off.
Meeting with his Slidell Oncologist on June 1st, where we'll learn about his Chemotherapy schedule.
After radiation this morning, we dropped off the oncologist's letter stating that his cancer had returned to our local Veterans Services Officer. She's a doll...the same gal that took care of us in '08. She felt confident that he'll receive 100% disability from the VA. They'll be in touch to set up an appointment with one of their doctors. I just hope that it happens AFTER we get more information on June 1st.
So- Things are happening very quickly. Our patient looks and feels great, although the radiation is starting to bother his hip. (nerves have become effected from the radiation)
Thank you for your continued prayers!
Friday, February 10, 2017
VA Faces Tough Decisions About Agent Orange Benefits for Vietnam Veterans
Northville, MI (Law Firm Newswire) February 7, 2017 - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) must tackle a long list of decisions about the effects of Agent Orange and veterans’ eligibility for benefits. A key issue is whether the department will add new conditions to its list of diseases and health problems presumed to be linked to the pesticide.
Agent Orange was sprayed to destroy vegetation used as cover by Vietnamese troops during the Vietnam War. ProPublica and The Virginian-Pilot have joined forces to investigate the toxic chemical’s effects on Vietnam veterans and their families, as well as their struggles to obtain VA benefits.
“Rather than waiting for the problem to simply disappear, the VA should pay close attention to the vast research that has been conducted about the devastating effects of Agent Orange,” said Jim Fausone, a Michigan veterans attorney. “It is likely that the exposure could have also impacted the descendants of service members. Seeking benefits from the VA should not be this difficult for affected veterans and their families.”
Many Vietnam veterans are fighting the VA for compensation for medical conditions believed to be linked to Agent Orange exposure. However, proving exposure and harm has been challenging for veterans and their widows. Many widows do not have access to their husbands’ full service histories or experience dealing with the VA.
Currently, a veteran can gain eligibility for VA disability payments by proving their service in Vietnam and showing they have one of the 14 ailments linked to Agent Orange exposure, including cancer, diabetes and heart disease. In March 2016, a panel of federal researchers claimed there is enough evidence to connect Agent Orange exposure to several conditions not on the VA’s list. These include hypothyroidism, stroke, bladder cancer, hypertension and other Parkinson’s Disease-like neurological diseases.
However, the VA may be reluctant to include the additional illnesses to its list of Agent Orange exposure-related medical conditions due to the potential expenses involved. For example, the chances of hypertension increase with age, and anyone with the ailment who entered Vietnam could become eligible for VA benefits.
LEARN MORE:
http://www.legalhelpforveterans.com
Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC
41700 West Six Mile Road, Suite 101
Northville, MI 48168
Toll Free Phone: 800.693.4800
Friday, January 27, 2017
New data suggest Agent Orange causing horrific third generation birth defects Vietnam vets are passing to their grandkids
What’s the “Agent Orange curse?”
True story: As veterans of the Vietnam war die off from cancer and other diseases and disorders they got from the incredibly toxic defoliant Agent Orange, the nightmare is not over, because research is revealing their children and grandchildren, who were never exposed to the pesticide, have birth defects that were passed on through their parents and grandparent’s affected genes. That’s the Agent Orange curse, and it can cause much more detriment than cancer, as if that weren’t enough, including heart disease, fibromyalgia, arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, spinal problems, autism, and birth defects like missing limbs, extra limbs, malformed limbs, speech difficulties, cleft lip palate, crooked fingers and webbed toes. Sadly, the US government is trying to cover it all up, waiting for the vets to die off, thinking the whole chronic nightmare will fade away, but it’s not fading at all.
Vietnam vets believe billions of dollars lie at the heart of why their claims have gone unexamined by the US government and Veterans Affairs
First of all, compensating veterans for all their health problems inflicted by the haphazard spreading of and treading through toxic pesticides in Vietnam costs tens of billions of dollars a year, but now we’re talking about compensating the vets’ kids and grandkids, who are grown up or growing up with horrific medical conditions that aren’t going away or getting any better. If the link between Agent Orange and their children’s conditions is proven by science, we’re talking billions more.
How does the VA ignore all these legitimate claims? Answer: the nefarious “Dr. Orange”
For decades now, the VA and the military have relied on one chemical-industry shill’s assessment of whether Agent Orange caused health detriment to our veterans. A man by the name of Alvin L. Young headed up a government sanctioned plan to destroy evidence of any connection between aircrafts that spread agent orange and veteran’s sicknesses, and to ward off journalists that ask questions through their investigations.
Young functions as a “consultant” and an “expert” on herbicides who guides the stance of the military and U.S. Department of Veterans in their mass denial of benefits and compensation to the thousands of suffering soldiers, and now their children and grandchildren too. Agent Orange herbicides were so destructive they could burn down brush and foliage where the enemy was hiding, and the U.S. even dumped the poison into rivers, streams, and waterways to infect the food and drinking water, knowing good and well the toxic effects of the orange nightmare that contains the lethal chemical dioxin. Young, nicknamed by Vietnam veterans as “Dr. Orange,” even developed a plan to destroy Agent Orange a decade later.
Young’s claim for decades? Few veterans were exposed and the doses were too small to harm them. He has said on record that some vets are just “freeloaders” who are making up ailments to “cash in” on the VA’s compensation program. The VA repeatedly cites Young’s work as if it is the “be-all end-all” scientific conclusion to every case brought to them, saving the government millions, if not billions of dollars, while all these soldiers, their kids, and their grandkids suffer and go broke trying to pay their medical care bills.
Now, frustrated veterans, top government officials and respected scientists contend that Young’s self-labeled “investigations” are without merit, omit key facts, and worse yet, were funded by none other than Monsanto Co. and Dow Chemical Co.–the actual manufacturers of agent orange. Alvin Young is nothing more than a huckster and a shill who’s regurgitating research lies to save corporations from getting sued. Even prominent experts on dioxin from NIH say his talk about dioxin is “in no way accurate.” Young is not even qualified to make conclusions about human health effects.
An emeritus professor at Columbia University and an Agent Orange researcher says Young and the VA repeatedly clash with any concerted effort to study health effects from agent orange exposure and they even try to keep studies from being conducted, and have been doing so ever since the sick and dying soldiers returned from the Vietnam War. The “color orange” runs through the veins of Vietnam Vets like poison. Veterans now believe that the birth defects can even skip a generation, passing over their children but then affecting their grandchildren.
Now, here comes the rub: What pesticide ingredients do you think are in conventional food today?
GMO food delivers a small amount of Agent Orange ingredients into your blood and mutates your cells over time. How long that mutation of cells takes to overwhelm one of your vital organs, or strangulate your lungs or your brain is just a matter of how much of it you eat, how often, and for how long. Glyphosate is now regularly sprayed on conventional crops like wheat and sugar cane as a drying agent. Glyphosate, which makes up about 50% of the Roundup herbicide, has been proven through vigorous laboratory research to cause horrific tumors and other cancers in laboratory animals.
Most genetically engineered foods like corn, soy, and canola contain some of the same herbicide ingredients as agent orange, namely glyphosate and dioxin. Do you and your children eat “agent orange” corn and soy? These popular GM foods are made and sprayed by Monsanto and Dow Chemical, don’t you know?
Plenty of LINKS here
True story: As veterans of the Vietnam war die off from cancer and other diseases and disorders they got from the incredibly toxic defoliant Agent Orange, the nightmare is not over, because research is revealing their children and grandchildren, who were never exposed to the pesticide, have birth defects that were passed on through their parents and grandparent’s affected genes. That’s the Agent Orange curse, and it can cause much more detriment than cancer, as if that weren’t enough, including heart disease, fibromyalgia, arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, spinal problems, autism, and birth defects like missing limbs, extra limbs, malformed limbs, speech difficulties, cleft lip palate, crooked fingers and webbed toes. Sadly, the US government is trying to cover it all up, waiting for the vets to die off, thinking the whole chronic nightmare will fade away, but it’s not fading at all.
Vietnam vets believe billions of dollars lie at the heart of why their claims have gone unexamined by the US government and Veterans Affairs
First of all, compensating veterans for all their health problems inflicted by the haphazard spreading of and treading through toxic pesticides in Vietnam costs tens of billions of dollars a year, but now we’re talking about compensating the vets’ kids and grandkids, who are grown up or growing up with horrific medical conditions that aren’t going away or getting any better. If the link between Agent Orange and their children’s conditions is proven by science, we’re talking billions more.
How does the VA ignore all these legitimate claims? Answer: the nefarious “Dr. Orange”
For decades now, the VA and the military have relied on one chemical-industry shill’s assessment of whether Agent Orange caused health detriment to our veterans. A man by the name of Alvin L. Young headed up a government sanctioned plan to destroy evidence of any connection between aircrafts that spread agent orange and veteran’s sicknesses, and to ward off journalists that ask questions through their investigations.
Young functions as a “consultant” and an “expert” on herbicides who guides the stance of the military and U.S. Department of Veterans in their mass denial of benefits and compensation to the thousands of suffering soldiers, and now their children and grandchildren too. Agent Orange herbicides were so destructive they could burn down brush and foliage where the enemy was hiding, and the U.S. even dumped the poison into rivers, streams, and waterways to infect the food and drinking water, knowing good and well the toxic effects of the orange nightmare that contains the lethal chemical dioxin. Young, nicknamed by Vietnam veterans as “Dr. Orange,” even developed a plan to destroy Agent Orange a decade later.
Young’s claim for decades? Few veterans were exposed and the doses were too small to harm them. He has said on record that some vets are just “freeloaders” who are making up ailments to “cash in” on the VA’s compensation program. The VA repeatedly cites Young’s work as if it is the “be-all end-all” scientific conclusion to every case brought to them, saving the government millions, if not billions of dollars, while all these soldiers, their kids, and their grandkids suffer and go broke trying to pay their medical care bills.
Now, frustrated veterans, top government officials and respected scientists contend that Young’s self-labeled “investigations” are without merit, omit key facts, and worse yet, were funded by none other than Monsanto Co. and Dow Chemical Co.–the actual manufacturers of agent orange. Alvin Young is nothing more than a huckster and a shill who’s regurgitating research lies to save corporations from getting sued. Even prominent experts on dioxin from NIH say his talk about dioxin is “in no way accurate.” Young is not even qualified to make conclusions about human health effects.
An emeritus professor at Columbia University and an Agent Orange researcher says Young and the VA repeatedly clash with any concerted effort to study health effects from agent orange exposure and they even try to keep studies from being conducted, and have been doing so ever since the sick and dying soldiers returned from the Vietnam War. The “color orange” runs through the veins of Vietnam Vets like poison. Veterans now believe that the birth defects can even skip a generation, passing over their children but then affecting their grandchildren.
Now, here comes the rub: What pesticide ingredients do you think are in conventional food today?
GMO food delivers a small amount of Agent Orange ingredients into your blood and mutates your cells over time. How long that mutation of cells takes to overwhelm one of your vital organs, or strangulate your lungs or your brain is just a matter of how much of it you eat, how often, and for how long. Glyphosate is now regularly sprayed on conventional crops like wheat and sugar cane as a drying agent. Glyphosate, which makes up about 50% of the Roundup herbicide, has been proven through vigorous laboratory research to cause horrific tumors and other cancers in laboratory animals.
Most genetically engineered foods like corn, soy, and canola contain some of the same herbicide ingredients as agent orange, namely glyphosate and dioxin. Do you and your children eat “agent orange” corn and soy? These popular GM foods are made and sprayed by Monsanto and Dow Chemical, don’t you know?
Plenty of LINKS here
Tuesday, March 1, 2016
VA benefits available for those impacted by Agent Orange
When Bob Blower was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2001, he underwent successful surgery and moved on.
A year later, when his friend Vince Kilmartin was diagnosed with prostate cancer, Blower helped guide him through the treatment. Kilmartin also underwent successful surgery to treat the disease.
Six years later, in 2008, Kilmartin happened to see in a newspaper article that a Veterans Administration study found a link between exposure to Agent Orange, the anti-defoliant used in Vietnam, and prostate cancer.
When he spoke to someone in the Oakland VA office, Kilmartin learned that not only was he eligible for benefits related to his treatment for prostate cancer, but also for the two heart procedures he'd had to put stents in because of blocked arteries.
Prostate cancer and blocked arteries are just two medical conditions the Veterans Administration links to exposure to Agent Orange. Although the VA doesn’t contact veterans about potential benefits they may be due, it does have a wealth of information on its website ( va.gov, under benefits, special groups, Vietnam veterans). Veterans have to take the initiative, though.
Kilmartin received his benefits in 2008, but the veteran with 20 years of active duty — five in the U.S. Navy and 15 more in the U.S. Coast guard after a career in education — didn't give it much thought afterward.
But last fall when he and Blower were playing a round of golf, their having had prostate cancer came up in conversation.
“I said, ‘Bob, did you ever apply for VA benefits?’” Kilmartin remembered. “He said, ‘No, how would I know that?’”
Blower spent five years in the Navy, including a year aboard the USS Magoffin, a TAC Transport, which was docked in Danang in 1966. He left the military after five years in the naval reserves, and moved onto his civilian life, becoming a Realtor and raising a family.
When he was diagnosed with cancer, his past military service never entered his mind, but Kilmartin knew better.
“He mentored me,” Blower said. “He told me you have to get all your medical records, your military records and where your ship was.”
The two met with Jerry Jolly at the San Joaquin County Veterans Services office and provided Blower’s discharge papers, the name of his ship and the medical records that proved he'd had prostate cancer. Blower is now awaiting his benefits.
“We started thinking there are probably a lot of guys like me who didn’t know they were eligible,” Blower said.
Exposure to Agent Orange has been linked to a 52 percent overall increased risk of prostate cancer in Vietnam vets, according to an analysis published in the American Cancer Society journal Cancer. Spreading the word about the connection, and the benefits available, has become the mission of Kilmartin and Blower.
It’s been one of Tino Adame’s jobs for a long time as the American Legion’s state chairman of veteran affairs and rehabilitation.
“My job is to get the word out to veterans through the American Legion or any other veterans organization, any way I can,” Adame said. “I need to get veterans informed about Agent Orange, what’s covered. “
It’s important work for Adame, a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam in 1966. He’s devoted to veterans and was long involved with Stockton’s Karl Ross American Legion post before working at the state level.
Adame was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2010 and received VA benefits.
He is now undergoing chemotherapy for tumors on his kidneys, but that cancer is not linked to Agent Orange at this time.
The U.S. military sprayed nearly 20 million gallons of herbicides on South Vietnam and parts of Laos and Cambodia from 1962 to 1971 to defoliate the jungle cover of enemy soldiers and to destroy their food source. Veterans exposed to the chemicals, in particular dioxin, began experiencing illnesses as early as the 1970s. The U.S. government initially resisted an admission that Agent Orange had caused health problems, but has since expanded its list of illnesses “associated” with exposure. That list now includes numerous cancers (prostate, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s Disease among them), Parkinson’s disease and certain heart conditions. More studies are ongoing, Adame said.
“It stirs a lot of memories,” Adame said. “Talking to other vets, we could all see it (when it was sprayed). I was a squad leader and I’d radio the helicopter and tell them we were under them and they’d say, ‘sorry, we’re ordered to spray here. Get under a poncho.’”
Kilmartin, too, remembers the spraying.
“When we flew into Danang, you got off the plane and you could see the stuff,” Kilmartin said. “They’d be spraying in areas where the fighting was going on, where the Marines were out in the field. They’d start flying and the Agent Orange would be sprayed everywhere, and the wind would blow it back.”
Most veterans who served time in country during the Vietnam War were exposed to the toxic chemical.
If little consideration was given to troops at the time of the spraying, the U.S. government is now making amends. Veterans, though, need to ask for help.
LINK
A year later, when his friend Vince Kilmartin was diagnosed with prostate cancer, Blower helped guide him through the treatment. Kilmartin also underwent successful surgery to treat the disease.
Six years later, in 2008, Kilmartin happened to see in a newspaper article that a Veterans Administration study found a link between exposure to Agent Orange, the anti-defoliant used in Vietnam, and prostate cancer.
When he spoke to someone in the Oakland VA office, Kilmartin learned that not only was he eligible for benefits related to his treatment for prostate cancer, but also for the two heart procedures he'd had to put stents in because of blocked arteries.
Prostate cancer and blocked arteries are just two medical conditions the Veterans Administration links to exposure to Agent Orange. Although the VA doesn’t contact veterans about potential benefits they may be due, it does have a wealth of information on its website ( va.gov, under benefits, special groups, Vietnam veterans). Veterans have to take the initiative, though.
Kilmartin received his benefits in 2008, but the veteran with 20 years of active duty — five in the U.S. Navy and 15 more in the U.S. Coast guard after a career in education — didn't give it much thought afterward.
But last fall when he and Blower were playing a round of golf, their having had prostate cancer came up in conversation.
“I said, ‘Bob, did you ever apply for VA benefits?’” Kilmartin remembered. “He said, ‘No, how would I know that?’”
Blower spent five years in the Navy, including a year aboard the USS Magoffin, a TAC Transport, which was docked in Danang in 1966. He left the military after five years in the naval reserves, and moved onto his civilian life, becoming a Realtor and raising a family.
When he was diagnosed with cancer, his past military service never entered his mind, but Kilmartin knew better.
“He mentored me,” Blower said. “He told me you have to get all your medical records, your military records and where your ship was.”
The two met with Jerry Jolly at the San Joaquin County Veterans Services office and provided Blower’s discharge papers, the name of his ship and the medical records that proved he'd had prostate cancer. Blower is now awaiting his benefits.
“We started thinking there are probably a lot of guys like me who didn’t know they were eligible,” Blower said.
Exposure to Agent Orange has been linked to a 52 percent overall increased risk of prostate cancer in Vietnam vets, according to an analysis published in the American Cancer Society journal Cancer. Spreading the word about the connection, and the benefits available, has become the mission of Kilmartin and Blower.
It’s been one of Tino Adame’s jobs for a long time as the American Legion’s state chairman of veteran affairs and rehabilitation.
“My job is to get the word out to veterans through the American Legion or any other veterans organization, any way I can,” Adame said. “I need to get veterans informed about Agent Orange, what’s covered. “
It’s important work for Adame, a U.S. Marine who served in Vietnam in 1966. He’s devoted to veterans and was long involved with Stockton’s Karl Ross American Legion post before working at the state level.
Adame was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2010 and received VA benefits.
He is now undergoing chemotherapy for tumors on his kidneys, but that cancer is not linked to Agent Orange at this time.
The U.S. military sprayed nearly 20 million gallons of herbicides on South Vietnam and parts of Laos and Cambodia from 1962 to 1971 to defoliate the jungle cover of enemy soldiers and to destroy their food source. Veterans exposed to the chemicals, in particular dioxin, began experiencing illnesses as early as the 1970s. The U.S. government initially resisted an admission that Agent Orange had caused health problems, but has since expanded its list of illnesses “associated” with exposure. That list now includes numerous cancers (prostate, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Hodgkin’s Disease among them), Parkinson’s disease and certain heart conditions. More studies are ongoing, Adame said.
“It stirs a lot of memories,” Adame said. “Talking to other vets, we could all see it (when it was sprayed). I was a squad leader and I’d radio the helicopter and tell them we were under them and they’d say, ‘sorry, we’re ordered to spray here. Get under a poncho.’”
Kilmartin, too, remembers the spraying.
“When we flew into Danang, you got off the plane and you could see the stuff,” Kilmartin said. “They’d be spraying in areas where the fighting was going on, where the Marines were out in the field. They’d start flying and the Agent Orange would be sprayed everywhere, and the wind would blow it back.”
Most veterans who served time in country during the Vietnam War were exposed to the toxic chemical.
If little consideration was given to troops at the time of the spraying, the U.S. government is now making amends. Veterans, though, need to ask for help.
LINK
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
How to Prove Your Disability for VA Claims
Oftentimes only people with disabilities know the extend of their own suffering and difficulties, but there are times when letting the outside world know how you feel, as best as you can, is important.
In the case of applying for disability claims, there are some things you should know for giving yourself the best chance at success, as noted in this recent column by Ken Cruickshank, a retired Navy Master Chief Petty Officer and the Veterans Services Officer for Tulare County in California.
Among the most important points made by Cruickshank:
-You should apply for a service-connected disability benefit as soon as possible after your discharge date, which will help you prove it was service-connected
-The verification process is the first step, and you typically need three items of support: medical evidence of a current, chronic (continuous) disability; evidence of having suffered a disease, injury, or event while engaged in active service; and evidence linking these two items together.
Two Categories to Know
Your claim will fall under one of two categories: direct service connection or presumptive service connection.
Direct service connection meets all of the three conditions mentioned earlier, while presumptive disability refers to a health condition that could possibly have arisen during service.
For a more detailed explanation of what you should know before you apply, check out Cruickshank’s column by clicking here.
LINKS HERE
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
Veteran Fights for $250K in Benefits for Agent Orange-Caused Condition
Don Rabush says he is owed more than $250,000 in retroactive benefits from the VA
Frustrated and fed-up, Vietnam veteran Don Rabush calls his fight to get Veterans Affairs benefits for an ailment caused by Agent Orange one of the worth battles he’s ever faced.
The Army second lieutenant has been working to get nearly 40 years of retroactive benefits after suffering a heart attack in 1974.
Though a doctor at the time told him the attack was not war-related, the decision was reversed in 2010 when doctors discovered Rabush suffered a heart condition from contact with Agent Orange. He encountered the chemical during his five and a half years of service.
“In Vietnam, I was fighting the Viet Cong. This is a more vicious enemy. These are people who hide behind bureaucracy not to serve veterans," Rabush told NBC 7 Tuesday.
When Rabush filed for benefits in 2010, the VA granted them. Officials are not disputing Rabush’s ailments or their cause, but when the benefits should start.
Rabush said he should get them retroactively to 1974, but the VA says they should start in 2010 when he filed his new claim.
At issue, says VA Pension Management Center Manager Gary Chesterton, is a form Rabush submitted in 1974, which the VA says was a procedural form, not a claim form.
Disabled American Veterans representative Guy Anastasia told NBC 7 Rabush’s checks say otherwise.
“I did research. I went to the legal staff here and in D.C. to verify it can be used for adjudication purposes. It can be,” Anastasia said.
VA officials say it could be months before a decision is made in Rabush’s case.
The veteran said the fight isn’t about the more than $250,000 he stands to get if he wins. Instead, Rabush said it’s more about making sure he and other veterans who risked life and limb get the benefits they need to lead a healthy life.
“It’s common knowledge that VA claims their motto is — for those that are veterans — is ‘Delay, deny until they die.’ And believe me, I’ve felt all of that,” said Rabush.
Chesterton said 87 percent of the people who work in the office are veterans, and they grant benefits as the law allows.
The Disabled American Veterans office is working with congressional leaders to craft legislation to prevent similar issues in the future.
LINK
Frustrated and fed-up, Vietnam veteran Don Rabush calls his fight to get Veterans Affairs benefits for an ailment caused by Agent Orange one of the worth battles he’s ever faced.
The Army second lieutenant has been working to get nearly 40 years of retroactive benefits after suffering a heart attack in 1974.
Though a doctor at the time told him the attack was not war-related, the decision was reversed in 2010 when doctors discovered Rabush suffered a heart condition from contact with Agent Orange. He encountered the chemical during his five and a half years of service.
“In Vietnam, I was fighting the Viet Cong. This is a more vicious enemy. These are people who hide behind bureaucracy not to serve veterans," Rabush told NBC 7 Tuesday.
When Rabush filed for benefits in 2010, the VA granted them. Officials are not disputing Rabush’s ailments or their cause, but when the benefits should start.
Rabush said he should get them retroactively to 1974, but the VA says they should start in 2010 when he filed his new claim.
At issue, says VA Pension Management Center Manager Gary Chesterton, is a form Rabush submitted in 1974, which the VA says was a procedural form, not a claim form.
Disabled American Veterans representative Guy Anastasia told NBC 7 Rabush’s checks say otherwise.
“I did research. I went to the legal staff here and in D.C. to verify it can be used for adjudication purposes. It can be,” Anastasia said.
VA officials say it could be months before a decision is made in Rabush’s case.
The veteran said the fight isn’t about the more than $250,000 he stands to get if he wins. Instead, Rabush said it’s more about making sure he and other veterans who risked life and limb get the benefits they need to lead a healthy life.
“It’s common knowledge that VA claims their motto is — for those that are veterans — is ‘Delay, deny until they die.’ And believe me, I’ve felt all of that,” said Rabush.
Chesterton said 87 percent of the people who work in the office are veterans, and they grant benefits as the law allows.
The Disabled American Veterans office is working with congressional leaders to craft legislation to prevent similar issues in the future.
LINK
Thursday, November 20, 2014
What did VA, DoD Cover Up with incomplete Thailand Agent Orange Report?
CAUGHT ‘EM – VA.gov linked to a declassified DoD report on use of Agent Orange in Thailand. Upon closer examination, we learned that 25% of the report was deleted. Luckily, we just found those pages and explain what it may mean here.
The original turned up on a DoD website after a lot of digging, and I think I have a theory as to why they did it. This MMQB covers what I found and why it could impact your disability claim.
Hi and welcome to another edition of the Monday Morning Quarterback for Veterans. I am your host, Benjamin Krause.
This week, I am writing about my research into the USAF’s use of herbicides in Thailand and what it could mean for veterans fighting with VA to prove exposure.
From what I can tell, there may be a coverup regarding the documentation VA has provided to veterans. The information was supposedly given to help prove disability claims. Meanwhile, the documentation is incomplete and leads any casual reader away from potentially better resources to prove their claim.
Here is what I’ll cover today:
*Fed admits to Agent Orange use in Thailand
*VA’s Thailand fails the smell test
*Index of missing files
*Where to find records about Agent Orange usage
*What it could mean for your disability claim
JUMP for Much More
Monday, November 17, 2014
Veterans' Diseases Associated with Agent Orange
VA assumes that certain diseases can be related to a Veteran’s qualifying military service. We call these "presumptive diseases."
VA has recognized certain cancers and other health problems as presumptive diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange or other herbicides during military service. Veterans and their survivors may be eligible for benefits for these diseases.
AL Amyloidosis
A rare disease caused when an abnormal protein, amyloid, enters tissues or organs
Chronic B-cell Leukemias
A type of cancer which affects white blood cells
Chloracne (or similar acneform disease)
A skin condition that occurs soon after exposure to chemicals and looks like common forms of acne seen in teenagers. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of exposure to herbicides.
Diabetes Mellitus Type 2
A disease characterized by high blood sugar levels resulting from the body’s inability to respond properly to the hormone insulin
Hodgkin’s Disease
A malignant lymphoma (cancer) characterized by progressive enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver, and spleen, and by progressive anemia
Ischemic Heart Disease
A disease characterized by a reduced supply of blood to the heart, that leads to chest pain
Multiple Myeloma
A cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell in bone marrow
Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
A group of cancers that affect the lymph glands and other lymphatic tissue
Parkinson’s Disease
A progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects muscle movement
Peripheral Neuropathy, Early-Onset
A nervous system condition that causes numbness, tingling, and motor weakness. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of herbicide exposure.
Porphyria Cutanea Tarda
A disorder characterized by liver dysfunction and by thinning and blistering of the skin in sun-exposed areas. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of exposure to herbicides.
Prostate Cancer
Cancer of the prostate; one of the most common cancers among men
Respiratory Cancers (includes lung cancer)
Cancers of the lung, larynx, trachea, and bronchus
Soft Tissue Sarcomas (other than osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, Kaposi’s sarcoma, or mesothelioma)
A group of different types of cancers in body tissues such as muscle, fat, blood and lymph vessels, and connective tissues
LIVE HEALTHY
There are steps Veterans can take to help prevent heart disease, cancer, and other common diseases of aging. Get the recommended health screenings, eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, and don't smoke. Learn more about healthy living.
Children with birth defects
VA presumes certain birth defects in children of Vietnam and Korea Veterans are associated with Veterans' qualifying military service.
Veterans with Lou Gehrig's Disease
VA presumes Lou Gehrig's Disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS) diagnosed in all Veterans who had 90 days or more continuous active military service is related to their service, although ALS is not related to Agent Orange exposure.
LINKS HERE
VA has recognized certain cancers and other health problems as presumptive diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange or other herbicides during military service. Veterans and their survivors may be eligible for benefits for these diseases.
AL Amyloidosis
A rare disease caused when an abnormal protein, amyloid, enters tissues or organs
Chronic B-cell Leukemias
A type of cancer which affects white blood cells
Chloracne (or similar acneform disease)
A skin condition that occurs soon after exposure to chemicals and looks like common forms of acne seen in teenagers. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of exposure to herbicides.
Diabetes Mellitus Type 2
A disease characterized by high blood sugar levels resulting from the body’s inability to respond properly to the hormone insulin
Hodgkin’s Disease
A malignant lymphoma (cancer) characterized by progressive enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver, and spleen, and by progressive anemia
Ischemic Heart Disease
A disease characterized by a reduced supply of blood to the heart, that leads to chest pain
Multiple Myeloma
A cancer of plasma cells, a type of white blood cell in bone marrow
Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
A group of cancers that affect the lymph glands and other lymphatic tissue
Parkinson’s Disease
A progressive disorder of the nervous system that affects muscle movement
Peripheral Neuropathy, Early-Onset
A nervous system condition that causes numbness, tingling, and motor weakness. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of herbicide exposure.
Porphyria Cutanea Tarda
A disorder characterized by liver dysfunction and by thinning and blistering of the skin in sun-exposed areas. Under VA's rating regulations, it must be at least 10 percent disabling within one year of exposure to herbicides.
Prostate Cancer
Cancer of the prostate; one of the most common cancers among men
Respiratory Cancers (includes lung cancer)
Cancers of the lung, larynx, trachea, and bronchus
Soft Tissue Sarcomas (other than osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, Kaposi’s sarcoma, or mesothelioma)
A group of different types of cancers in body tissues such as muscle, fat, blood and lymph vessels, and connective tissues
LIVE HEALTHY
There are steps Veterans can take to help prevent heart disease, cancer, and other common diseases of aging. Get the recommended health screenings, eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, and don't smoke. Learn more about healthy living.
Children with birth defects
VA presumes certain birth defects in children of Vietnam and Korea Veterans are associated with Veterans' qualifying military service.
Veterans with Lou Gehrig's Disease
VA presumes Lou Gehrig's Disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS) diagnosed in all Veterans who had 90 days or more continuous active military service is related to their service, although ALS is not related to Agent Orange exposure.
LINKS HERE
Thursday, November 13, 2014
The 40-year war AGENT ORANGE CASUALTIES KEEP MOUNTING
'They can't cure it'
Eleven years ago, at a routine physical, Terry Singer's doctor ordered him to see an oncologist. The elevated protein he found in his blood pointed to multiple myeloma, a rare and deadly cancer of the plasma cells and one of the presumptive diseases the government recognizes as associated with Agent Orange exposure.
"I didn't have any connection in my mind between the disease and my service in Vietnam," Singer said. "I didn't know there was any connection."
Singer was told he may have two to three years to live.
"The diagnosis was pretty shocking," he said.
Eleven years later, Singer continues to buck his doctor's expectations. The Hummelstown resident darts from one doctor's visit to the next, tending to quarterly medical screenings. Every four months or so, Singer undergoes blood work, MRIs and CAT scans to monitor his disease. So far, he has staved off treatment, which comes with its own adverse side effects and limitations.
"Sooner or later, it'll stop working," Singer said. "You run through the gamut, and then you have nothing left. They can't cure it."
Singer is playing the odds that he won't need chemotherapy for a long time.
A self-proclaimed news junkie, he worries that the government and VA have not adequately informed veterans of Agent Orange compensation.
"My gut tells me there are thousands, if not tens of thousands, [of Vietnam] veterans across the country ... who have been diagnosed with a disease, who are not aware that they might be eligible for disability benefits," he said.
Singer knows firsthand that, even under the best of circumstances, much less a crisis, the VA puts veterans through an exhaustive undertaking to process claims and secure benefits.
Singer waited close to a year for his claim for a presumptive disease to be settled.
He has never come across publicity or outreach on the part of the VA to inform Vietnam veterans about Agent Orange benefits. The federal agency, for the record, maintains a comprehensive website filled with information related to Agent Orange. Singer worries that thousands of veterans, even those who, like him, find out about the benefits by accident, are falling through the cracks.
"Part of not forgetting the sacrifice of that era, in particular because of the harsh way they were received by their countrymen, part of the commitment that needs to be sustained until that generation no longer exists is to be committed to doing as much as possible to make sure these veterans are aware they are entitled to compensation for these diseases," Singer said.
Singer counts himself lucky. Now retired, he has his own insurance and Medicare, and his 100 percent disability covers the medical care for his blood cancer.
"I feel fortunate that I'm still here and fortunate that I haven't suffered a lot," he said. "I know there are thousands of veterans who have suffered more greatly ... not that any benefit will make up for that. It won't. But it can make navigating things a little easier."
MORE Agent Orange Stories HERE
Eleven years ago, at a routine physical, Terry Singer's doctor ordered him to see an oncologist. The elevated protein he found in his blood pointed to multiple myeloma, a rare and deadly cancer of the plasma cells and one of the presumptive diseases the government recognizes as associated with Agent Orange exposure.
"I didn't have any connection in my mind between the disease and my service in Vietnam," Singer said. "I didn't know there was any connection."
Singer was told he may have two to three years to live.
"The diagnosis was pretty shocking," he said.
Eleven years later, Singer continues to buck his doctor's expectations. The Hummelstown resident darts from one doctor's visit to the next, tending to quarterly medical screenings. Every four months or so, Singer undergoes blood work, MRIs and CAT scans to monitor his disease. So far, he has staved off treatment, which comes with its own adverse side effects and limitations.
"Sooner or later, it'll stop working," Singer said. "You run through the gamut, and then you have nothing left. They can't cure it."
Singer is playing the odds that he won't need chemotherapy for a long time.
A self-proclaimed news junkie, he worries that the government and VA have not adequately informed veterans of Agent Orange compensation.
"My gut tells me there are thousands, if not tens of thousands, [of Vietnam] veterans across the country ... who have been diagnosed with a disease, who are not aware that they might be eligible for disability benefits," he said.
Singer knows firsthand that, even under the best of circumstances, much less a crisis, the VA puts veterans through an exhaustive undertaking to process claims and secure benefits.
Singer waited close to a year for his claim for a presumptive disease to be settled.
He has never come across publicity or outreach on the part of the VA to inform Vietnam veterans about Agent Orange benefits. The federal agency, for the record, maintains a comprehensive website filled with information related to Agent Orange. Singer worries that thousands of veterans, even those who, like him, find out about the benefits by accident, are falling through the cracks.
"Part of not forgetting the sacrifice of that era, in particular because of the harsh way they were received by their countrymen, part of the commitment that needs to be sustained until that generation no longer exists is to be committed to doing as much as possible to make sure these veterans are aware they are entitled to compensation for these diseases," Singer said.
Singer counts himself lucky. Now retired, he has his own insurance and Medicare, and his 100 percent disability covers the medical care for his blood cancer.
"I feel fortunate that I'm still here and fortunate that I haven't suffered a lot," he said. "I know there are thousands of veterans who have suffered more greatly ... not that any benefit will make up for that. It won't. But it can make navigating things a little easier."
MORE Agent Orange Stories HERE
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Interactive Map Tracking Wait Time For Veterans’ Disability Claims
This map, created by the Center for Investigative Reporting, displays 58 VA regional offices and the number of backlogged claims by week on a national, regional and local level. This application will update itself every Monday to show each office's change in pending claims.
Explore the Data (Thanks to Facebook Friend, Lonnie Flowers!)
Explore the Data (Thanks to Facebook Friend, Lonnie Flowers!)
Friday, February 22, 2013
A Busy, Busy Week- VA Review, Casino, Doctors and Deer
Hi gang-
Firstly, let me say that our patient is doing very well. He looks and feels great.
Last week, Dom was scheduled for a Disability Review from the VA. As he's in remission, and no longer taking any cancer medications, they may wish to reduce his benefits. (Which infuriates me, as MM is not curable. He will always be under treatment for this cancer.)
The doctor would not allow me to join them. After about a half an hour of questioning, prodding and poking, Dom came out. We headed to the lab for ALOT of bloodwork, then hit the road.
We spent the night at the Beaux Rivage Casino in Biloxi. We were fortunate enough to get a "corner room", which is basically 2 complete walls of window overlooking the city of Biloxi and the Gulf of Mexico.
We played a bit of video poker, drank a few beers and had dinner at their buffet. It's been a few years since our last visit, and Dom was very disappointed to find that they no longer serve Snow Crab Legs on weekdays. Miss Piggy, however, made up for it by eating mass quantities of boiled shrimp and creme brulee.
All in all, it was a good day and a fun time. But, I'm a bit concerned with the VA right now. Time will tell. (A few days later, we received notice that the VA would be doing an ultrasound on him next Monday... apparently they've not made a decision yet)
************************************************************************
We had our quarterly appointment with Dr. Safah yesterday. We'll hear about his M-SPIKE in a couple of weeks. In the meanwhile, she is putting together a letter for us stating that Dom is "unemployable" due to his cancer.... Neuropathy, Dizziness, Fatigue, Low Tolerance to Heat and Sun, etc.
We then stopped by his Urologist's office with the same type of request, but separate issues involving his Prostate. No problem.
This was all suggested by my new buddies at AGENT ORANGE LEGACY on Facebook These guys really stick together, and I'm grateful for their guidance. THANKS, GUYS!
***********************************************************************
This is pretty neat, gang.... Dom ordered a couple of Wild Game Cameras for the property. We've been loaded with deer lately. They're coming right up to the house on a daily basis, and Dom has been keeping them loaded with corn. We get such a kick out of this! He mounted the camera about 3 feet from our house. One night, the camera took 82 pictures! What fun. Here's an example..... I get a kick out of the one it took of Dominic.
Our property is being over-run by Wild Boars. They're doing alot of damage....so, the other camera is going to be set up where they hang out in the woods. The area is all dug up and smells terrible.... there's no mistaking their stomping ground.... Hoping to have a pig roast in the near future!
Firstly, let me say that our patient is doing very well. He looks and feels great.
Last week, Dom was scheduled for a Disability Review from the VA. As he's in remission, and no longer taking any cancer medications, they may wish to reduce his benefits. (Which infuriates me, as MM is not curable. He will always be under treatment for this cancer.)
The doctor would not allow me to join them. After about a half an hour of questioning, prodding and poking, Dom came out. We headed to the lab for ALOT of bloodwork, then hit the road.
We spent the night at the Beaux Rivage Casino in Biloxi. We were fortunate enough to get a "corner room", which is basically 2 complete walls of window overlooking the city of Biloxi and the Gulf of Mexico.
All in all, it was a good day and a fun time. But, I'm a bit concerned with the VA right now. Time will tell. (A few days later, we received notice that the VA would be doing an ultrasound on him next Monday... apparently they've not made a decision yet)
************************************************************************
We had our quarterly appointment with Dr. Safah yesterday. We'll hear about his M-SPIKE in a couple of weeks. In the meanwhile, she is putting together a letter for us stating that Dom is "unemployable" due to his cancer.... Neuropathy, Dizziness, Fatigue, Low Tolerance to Heat and Sun, etc.
We then stopped by his Urologist's office with the same type of request, but separate issues involving his Prostate. No problem.
This was all suggested by my new buddies at AGENT ORANGE LEGACY on Facebook These guys really stick together, and I'm grateful for their guidance. THANKS, GUYS!
***********************************************************************
This is pretty neat, gang.... Dom ordered a couple of Wild Game Cameras for the property. We've been loaded with deer lately. They're coming right up to the house on a daily basis, and Dom has been keeping them loaded with corn. We get such a kick out of this! He mounted the camera about 3 feet from our house. One night, the camera took 82 pictures! What fun. Here's an example..... I get a kick out of the one it took of Dominic.
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