The official blog of American Veteran Magazine, the national quarterly publication of AMVETS.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Agent Orange Presumptions Extended For Korean DMZ Vets

This morning VA announced new rules for presumptive conditions resulting from Agent Orange exposure for veterans deployed along the demilitarized zone in South Korea.

The new regulation extends the window of service for presumptive claims from April 1, 1968 to Aug. 31, 1971. Previously, veterans were only presumed to have been exposed up until April 1969.

AMVETS National Service Director Denny Boller, who served along the demilitarized zone in the early 1970s, applauded the decision, which he said was a long time coming. Boller went on to say that veterans who have been fighting VA for decades will now be allowed to receive the care they deserve as a result of exposure to the toxic defoliant.

The new regulations are available in the latest version of the Federal Register, Volume 76, Number 16, which can be viewed by Clicking Here.

VA offers presumptive coverage for Agent Orange exposure for more than a dozen health conditions, which are outlined on the VA's official Web site.

AMVETS encourages all veterans suffering from a presumptive condition who meet the service requirements to file their claims as soon as possible, and remind veterans that AMVETS National Service Officers stand ready to assist in the claims process free of charge. A list of all AMVETS National Service Officers can be found on the AMVETS National Web site.

AMVETS has consistently advocated for long-overdue Agent Orange benefits and Boller said this is a much-needed victory for many who served more than 40 years ago.

(Image: A South Korean soldier stands sentry on the Bridge of No Return alongside a rusty sign marking the military demarcation on the Korean Demilitarized Zone. U.S. Army photo by Edward N. Johnson, released.)

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6 comments:

  1. Are their widows entitled to back retro compensation like those of Nam widows??? we stood by and took care of our loved ones just like the Nam widows did. Agent Orange does not discriminate, does the VA??

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  2. my question is this why would a goverment allow something to be sprayed that they new noting about , this was carelessly done to the veterns expence , it"s untelling how many men died premature deaths because of this terrible mistake, what a terriable thing this was . not just to united states troops but for the rock korean forces

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  3. Served in Korea DMZ 2nd INF 3/23, 2/68 to 3/69.
    Shortly afterword I developed throbbing pains in my feet and hypoglycemia. I just went down to VA on 9/29/12 for the first time to start the process.
    Thank heaven for your info.
    Rich R

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  4. Funny. I have proof that Agent Orange was used in 1981. We had two guys who got exposed to it and had to be sent to the evac hospital. They even got compensation for exposure. Yet the VA doesn't say a word about the use of agent orange on the DMZ during the late 70's and early 80's. Yet I have signs of exposure and how on earth am I gonna prove it? Two bouts of cancer and now I have a growing tumor in my left lung. How about the irradiated water? That was a real hum dinger. We had our patrol sick as dogs. One guy's skin broke out and turned red peeled off and another started puking another had blood in his stool. I got really sick and craved water constantly. After that whole matter I got headaches so bad it felt like my head was gonna explode.

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  5. I'm really interested in DMZ (Demilitarized zone) tours. Thank you for very useful information. Is there any package deal for DMZ tour?

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