Agent Orange Act Extension Stalls

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© 2014 ‎(COVVHA) Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance INC
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Agent Orange Act Extension Stalls your help is needed immediately
Call the Subcommittee Chairman, Rep. Ralph Abraham (La.) Capitol Hill office (202-225-8490) to explain that the AOA expires September 30, 2015 and ask that the bill be approved immediately.

Congressman Tim Walz (Minn.) recently introduced the FRA-supported “Agent Orange Extension Act,” (H.R. 3423) which would extend the original sunset deadline of the Agent Orange Act of 1991 by two years. The extension would ensure that Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange receive just compensation and care. The 1991 Act expires on September 30, 2015; the legislation would extend its sunset to September 30, 2017. FRA warned the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees regarding the sunset of the Act during its March 18, 2015 testimony.

The Agent Orange Act of 1991 (AOA) established a presumption of service connection for diseases associated with Agent Orange exposure, relieving Vietnam veterans from the burden of providing evidence that their illness was a result of military service. This law directs the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) to periodically research and review diseases that might be associated with Agent Orange exposure. The VA is required to add diseases the NAS finds to have a positive association to Agent Orange exposure to the VA’s list of presumptive service-connected diseases. Since the enactment of the AOA, the NAS has issued reports that have led to the presumption of service connection for diseases such as Parkinson’s, B-cell leukemia and early onset peripheral neuropathy. Without these studies, thousands of Vietnam era veterans would have gone without the benefits they greatly deserve.

If the AOA expires, the VA would no longer be obligated to review the NAS report or add any new diseases to the presumption of service list, which could result in denying thousands of veterans their right to compensation. The bill has stalled in the House Veterans Affairs Committee Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee. Members are urged to use the FRA Action Center (www.fra.org/action-center) and can call the Subcommittee Chairman, Rep. Ralph Abraham (La.) Capitol Hill office (202-225-8490) to explain that the AOA expires September 30, 2015 and ask that the bill be approved immediately.

Article Originally appeared on the Fleet Reserve Association’s website

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© 2014 ‎(COVVHA) Children Of Vietnam Veterans Health Alliance INC
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