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Can Agent Orange Cause Asthma

D Manifestation Period For Chronic Respiratory Conditions Of Asthma Rhinitis And Sinusitis

How To Know The Symptoms Of Agent Orange | Veterans Benefits Jackson & MacNichol

In addition, there is no minimum time limit required for the length of military deployment. There is no set guidance on deployment and this varies widely by service: some smaller units may deploy for two weeks or less for specialized missions , while larger units may deploy for three to six months in the case of the U.S. Air Force, while some Army units have deployed in extreme cases for up to 15 months. There is no average deployment time because of these extremes.

Thus, VA will not require that the chronic respiratory conditions of asthma, rhinitis, and sinusitis, to include rhinosinusitis, manifest to a compensable degree or more so that more Gulf War Veterans can meet the lower eligibility criteria for presumptive service connection for exposure to fine, particulate matter even at a non-compensable level, which could also make veterans eligible to receive VA health care services for that condition at no cost to themselves.

Executive Orders 12866 And 13563

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, when regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits . emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and promoting flexibility. The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined that this rule is an economically significant regulatory action under Executive Order 12866. The Regulatory Impact Analysis associated with this rulemaking can be found as a supporting document at www.regulations.gov.

Va Expands List Of Illnesses Presumed To Have Been Caused By Agent Orange

VA is adding bladder cancer, Parkinsonism and hypothyroidism to the list of illnesses it acknowledges were caused by Agent Orange exposure in Southeast Asia, the department announced Thursday. It also will review and pay retroactive benefits to veterans and survivors whose VA disability and death benefits claims for the three diseases were previously denied, without requiring them to refile their claims.

The American Legion welcomed the news but expressed disappointment that VA didnt also include high blood pressure on the roster of presumptive conditions. Weve been advocating for this for several years, says Ralph Bozella chairman of Legions Veterans Affairs & Rehabilitation Commission. Theres enough scientific evidence to prove theres a connection between Agent Orange exposure and these illnesses. But VA long refused to grant presumptive service connection for the diseases until Congress mandated it in the most recent National Defense Authorization Act.

The lone exception is former VA Secretary Dr. David Shulkin, who acknowledged the link between Agent Orange and hypertension. But the Office of Management and Budget refused to allow Shulkin to grant Vietnam veterans presumptive service connection for the disease. We had to go to legislation to get the three new presumptives done and may have to do that for hypertension, Bozella says.

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Which Respiratory Illnesses Can Receive A Va Disability Rating

Below are some common respiratory illnesses and other breathing problems listed in the VA disability rating schedules guidelines:

  • Sinusitis
  • Aphonia
  • Emphysema
  • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
  • Bronchitis
  • Pulmonary vascular disease
  • Bacterial lung infections
  • Interstitial lung disease
  • Asthma

Depending on whats causing your breathing problems, the VA will rate your respiratory illness according to:

  • Your medical diagnosis
  • How seriously your breathing problems impact your quality of life and daily activities

Heres an example: The VA assigns a disability rating for your chronic bronchitis after conducting air-flow tests on your lungs. You can receive a 10%, 30%, 60% or 100% disability rating from the VA, which determines your monthly benefit amount. The higher your VA disability rating, the bigger your monthly benefits payment. Thats because your disability rating indicates how much your condition affects your ability to complete work tasks and function socially.

The VA makes an exception to the disability rating rule for cancer patients with breathing problems. If you have cancer, the VA always assigns a 100% disability rating during treatment and for six months after completion. Once youve completed your cancer treatment, the VA will reexamine you and potentially assign you a lower VA disability rating. If your cancer resurges and you need additional treatment, the VA automatically reassigns your claim a 100% disability rating.

Does It Matter How You Got Your Asthma In The Military

Respiratory Drugs (for Asthma &  COPD)

Getting your asthma service-connected depends on what kinds of things you did and where you did them. Within one year of discharge from serving in the Persian Gulf or other parts of the Southwest Asia theater, you might be able to get a presumptive rating. You or your surviving spouse have to report them by December 31, 2021, for it to be listed as presumptive and have a 10% or higher rating.

You can enlist with Asthma. Depending on if it is linked to heredity or an allergy, the Army wont deny you just because you have asthma. Over time, that diesel exhaust can aggravate and make it worse and that can be a service-connected disability. If your active duty makes a pre-existing condition worse, you can get it rated and get a check for it. Asthma is one of those tricky conditions to diagnose. It can have symptoms like bronchitis or heartburn. Asthma can also be a warning illness for COPD or emphysema depending on how those diseases progress.

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B Service In Afghanistan Syria And Djibouti On Or After September 19 2001

The presumption of PM2.5 exposure will also include those deployed to Afghanistan, Syria, and Djibouti on or after September 19, 2001, the earliest date when service members were deployed in these locations. The literature and studies overwhelmingly show the prevalence of particulate matter due to the nature of the arid climate in these locations as well. VA determined that the Southwest Asia theater of operations, Afghanistan, Syria, and Djibouti had similar arid or semi-arid climates with periods of high winds to suspend geologic dusts and regional pollutants, adhered to or a part of these dusts, though the composition of the PM varies in different regions. Therefore, VA is including Afghanistan, Syria, and Djibouti as qualifying locations for presumption of service connection based on presumed exposure to PM2.5.

VA’s Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry, which encourages veteran participation to help VA gather data and better understand the potential health effects of exposure to airborne hazards during military service, currently covers the Southwest Asia theater of operations, including Afghanistan, and will also expand the locations to include Syria and Uzbekistan. Expansion will be encouraged through periodic communications through the MyPay pay notifications with both active duty service members and veterans, and through press releases as well as through VA’s Health Outcomes Military Exposures website .

A 2010 Nrc Report Review Of The Department Of Defense Enhanced Particulate Matter Surveillance Program

In February 2008 the Department of Defense issued the Department of Defense Enhanced Particulate Matter Surveillance Program Final Report. The purpose of the study was to provide information on the chemical and physical properties of dust collected at deployment locations. Aerosol and bulk soil samples were collected during a period of Start Printed Page 42725approximately one year at 15 military sitesâincluding Djibouti, Afghanistan , Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Iraq , and Kuwait . The Enhanced Particulate Matter Surveillance Program Report found that exposures in the region may have exceeded military/national exposure guidelines, including EPA’s 24-hr NAAQS for PM2.5 .

The National Research Council of NASEM independently reviewed DOD’s final report in Review of the Department of Defense Enhanced Particulate Matter Surveillance Program Report in 2010. The NRC committee highlighted that the EPMSP was one of the first large-scale efforts to characterize PM exposure in deployed military personnel. Despite the practical challenges of conducting this effort in an austere deployment environment, the NRC Report found the results of the EMPSP can be viewed as providing sufficient evidence that deployed military personnel endured occupational exposure to a potential hazard to justify implementation of a comprehensive medical-surveillance program to assess PM-related health effects in military personnel deployed in the Middle East Theater.

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Get Help With Your Asthma Claim Appeal

Asthma is a common VA disability claim that gets denied. While the VA has a clear diagnostic code for Asthma, its hard to get into a C& P exam if you only have an asthma attack every other week. One key is getting help from a certified VA disability lawyer that can look over your case. Many veterans dont just have asthma, so you might get your VA asthma claim denied while other conditions receive a rating. Making the case for a combined rating is often the best way to go.

Check your VA Claim or Appeal Status on VA.gov here.

Many times, sleep apnea is secondary to asthma for a VA rating. If you suffer from both, make that case with the VA. When its hard to breathe during the day because of asthma and hard to sleep at night because of sleep apnea, you deserve separate ratings for asthma and sleep apnea! While the VA has separate rating schedules for asthma and sleep apnea, expressing how the combination of the two affect your daily life can help them understand your troubles.

You can read more from the Mayo Clinic here: Gulf War Illnesses: Causes and Controversies.

Thoughts On Va Pays For Agent Orange

Agent Orange VA Benefits and Related Conditions!
  • Mike Harringon

    Did the reporter find out how many suffering from ED is due to loss of the prostate?

  • PD
  • As a veteran who served in Vietnam sometimes its very har to understand why its such a fight with our own government to get help with the problems that we would never have suffered had we stayed home.

    I work in a VA. hospital and I hear it everyday, every single day I work, how many vets are denied benefits or how long it takes them to get compensation. Diabetes is is a presumptive agent orange disease, but you wont get compensated unless you have to take insulin shots.

    Some Vietnam vets try to live a healthy lifestyle and still come down with the disease, but through trying to live a healthy lifestyle only have to take an oral medication, which causes more problems. I only have one thing to say about thepoliticians quit stuffing your freaking pockets and help these men Now.

  • John P Merrill

    As a Army vet I did two tours in Nam. Im service connected with Irritable bowel syndrome and would like to find out how many other Nam. veterans have this same problem. But are not service connected.

  • Ron

    Im a vet that was in Vietnam. I suffer from peyronies disease. i was just wondering if anyone else suffers from this and thinks it could be related to agent orange.

  • yvonne

    my husband has IBS also did you file a claim for this? sometimes he is so miserable . please let me know. He was in vietman 1968-1970 USMC thanks, his wife

  • I was stationed in Pleiku and An Khe in 1969.

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    How Does The Va Rate Asthma

    Is asthma a VA disability? It can be, but qualifying it as a service connected disability depends on several factors. To be eligible for VA disability benefits for asthma, you generally need to prove your service connection along with providing plenty of medical evidence of your diagnosis, symptoms, and how your asthma affects your daily life.

    Asthma can be a challenging medical condition for VA benefits because it can be challenging to prove a connection to your service. It can also be a challenge to prove how severe your symptoms are, even if they prevent you from working or completing everyday tasks. Still, winning a veterans disability claim is possible with a significant amount of evidence of your condition. The VA rates asthma claims from 0% to 100% using the following information to determine the severity of your asthma:

    • How frequent your asthma attacks occur
    • How often you need medical intervention to prevent severe asthma attacks
    • How often you need to use asthma medication

    The VA also considers two metrics that evaluate your breathing: Forced Expiratory Volume and Forced Vital Capacity . FEV-1 measures how much air you can breathe out in one second forcefully, while FVC measures how much air you breathe out naturally after that second. The two metrics together give the VA a decent picture of your lung function.

    Is There A Link Between Agent Orange And Lung Cancer

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    Agent Orange was a mixture of herbicides used during the Vietnam War. From 1961 to 1971, the U.S. sprayed millions of gallons of AO and other Rainbow Herbicides in South Vietnam and nearby areas. The goal was to remove the enemys food supply and concealment. But AO was contaminated by a chemical called TCDD. TCDD is the most toxic member of a family of chemicals called dioxins.1

    After the war, many Vietnam veterans noticed illnesses possibly caused by AO exposure. We now know that AO exposure is linked to many diseases, including respiratory cancers.2,3

    The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs provides benefits to veterans who have these diseases and served in a location exposed to AO. You do not need to prove a connection between AO and the disease. The first step is to set up an AO Registry exam.4,5

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    How Much Will My Monthly Va Disability Benefit Be

    Depending on the severity of your disability, you can receive as much as $3,146.42 per month as a single person. If you have dependents, such as a spouse, children, or dependent parents, you can earn even more money on their behalf.

    The VA uses a disability rating system to assign benefits. Based on the severity of your condition, it assigns you a rating of 0 to 100 percent. The higher your disability rating, the more money you receive in benefits each month.

    As of December 1st, 2020 the VA disability rate benefit amounts are as follows:

    • 0 percent disability rating: $0.00 per month
    • 10 percent disability rating: $144.14 per month
    • 20 percent disability rating: $284.93 per month
    • 30 percent disability rating: $441.35 per month
    • 40 percent disability rating: $635.77 per month
    • 50 percent disability rating: $905.04 per month
    • 60 percent disability rating: $1,146.39 per month
    • 70 percent disability rating: $1,444.71 per month
    • 80 percent disability rating: $1,679.35 per month
    • 90 percent disability rating: $1,887.18 per month
    • 100 percent disability rating: $3,146.42 per month

    If your diagnosis is active cancer, the VA assigns an automatic disability rating of 100 percent. This qualifies you for the max benefit of $3,146.42 per month . Your 100 percent rating continues until six months after successful completion of a treatment program. At that time, the VA requires you undergo another evaluation to determine the current status of your diagnosis. It then re-rates you based on the result.

    When To Call A Va Disability Lawyer For Your Agent Orange And Copd Claim

    Agent Orange and Lung Cancer in U.S. Veterans

    VA disability claims are often wrongly denied, or rated too low. This is especially true of complicated medical conditions such as COPD. VA claims officials may wrongly deny that your condition is service-connected, for example. Or they may not apply the VA ratings rubrics correctly, resulting in a rating and monthly compensation that is hundreds or even thousands of dollars per month short of what you are entitled to.

    If you believe you may have been wrongly denied VA disability compensation, call us today for a no obligation review of your potential claim. We may be able to help you successfully appeal your claim, and get you the compensation you deserve.

    Toschedule a no-obligation consultation and see if we may be a good fit for you, call us today at 888-249-4426.

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    Copd And Its Ties To Agent Orange

    Although Agent Orange has not been directly linked to COPD, it has been associated with other medical conditions and several forms of cancer.4 Agent Orange exposure is linked with a higher risk of leukemia, lymphoma, soft tissue sarcoma, and cancer of the colon, bladder, liver, lung, tonsils, and throat.

    Dioxin exposure can also cause Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, hypothyroidism, immune system dysfunction, nerve disorders, muscular dysfunction, hormone disruption, and heart disease. Also, the chemical has been known to cause miscarriages and developmental issues in newborns. Some believe that it may contribute to Alzheimers or stroke. Others feel it has been genetically passed down to the children of Vietnam Era vets.5

    I National Academies Of Science Engineering And Medicine And National Research Council Reports

    More than 3.7 million United States service members have participated in operations in Southwest Asia. During and after the initial Gulf War conflict, veterans began reporting a variety of health problems, as documented through the NASEM Gulf War and Health, Volumes 1 through 11. In addition, concerns continue to be raised by service members, veterans, veteran advocates, and Congress about possible adverse health consequences related to in-theater exposures to particulate matter, including smoke from open burn pits, and other airborne hazards. Several studies by NASEM have examined the possible contribution of air pollution to adverse health effects among U.S. military personnel serving in the Middle East or their descendants.

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    Veterans Can Get Va Disability Benefits For Service

    While bronchitis is a condition where you get a buildup of mucus in your windpipe that doesnt go away quickly, Asthma comes upon a person as a rapid buildup of mucus or swelling of your windpipe. It can be caused by pollutants in the air, stress, an allergic reaction, physical activity, or even food preservatives or acid reflux. Because service-members in all branches can be subjected to pollutants, physical exertion, and stress, it is a viable cause for VA disability claims.

    The Mayo clinic shows conditions that can increase your likelihood of having asthma.

    • Relatives with asthma
    • Exhaust fumes, like diesel exhaust, or other air pollution
    • Occupational triggers such as pesticides, farming chemicals, manufacturing, and hairdressing.

    These last two points are the areas where the Veterans Administration gets involved. If you served in any of the armed forces, whether you saw combat or not, and you think you have shortness of breath because of it, call us. Iraq and Afghanistan have their burn pits, Vietnam had Agent Orange, and every unit has a number of trucks, tanks, or boats spewing out some nasty exhaust. Even marching on foot through deserted buildings can subject you to smoke, asbestos, chemicals, and smells that are warning you of toxic air. Any of these could start your asthma symptoms that will slowly worsen over time.

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