ERROR 1
ERROR 1
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
ERROR 2
Password and Confirm password must match.
If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)
ERROR 2
ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.
Vietnam veterans exposed to the herbicide agent orange are now eligible to receive service-related compensation for more illnesses, according to a rule published by the Department of Veterans Affairs on Aug. 31. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki has added three illnesses to the list of health problems that VA assumes are related to agent orange exposure. They are Parkinson’s disease, ischemic heart disease, and chronic B-cell leukemia. “I determined that the evidence provided was sufficient to award presumption of service connections for these three additional diseases,” Shinseki said in a statement. Veterans who have a presumed illness do not have to prove an association with the illness to their military service. The evidence Shinseki referred to is in the 2008 update on agent orange-related illnesses from the Institute of Medicine. The added medical coverage could cost $13.6 billion during the first year of payments, VA estimates, and more than $42 billion additional over the next 10 years.
Join the conversation
Contact the reporter
Submit a Letter to the Editor for publication
Engage with us on X