Thursday, April 15, 2010

Our military is rightly recognizing some wounded warriors of past wars

Our military is rightly recognizing some wounded warriors of past wars

A new way of doing business with the nation's veterans? That's what Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki hinted at when he announced in February that the VA would take a fresh look at whether the health complaints of many Gulf War veterans can be traced to their deployment, and whether they deserve compensation for it.

That new spirit was on display recently when the VA urged Vietnam veterans with certain diseases to file claims, even before the agency finishes up the paperwork declaring them service-related. Late last year, the VA decided that three diseases — a form of leukemia, Parkinson's disease and heart disease — can be traced to exposure to Agent Orange, a defoliant the military sprayed by the millions of gallons in Vietnam.

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