Hundreds of thousands of people were exposed to toxic chemicals in the water at Camp Lejeune from the 1950s to the late 1980s. Two water treatment facilities were polluted by chemicals such as trichloroethylene (TCE), benzene, perchloroethylene (PCE), and vinyl chloride. The VA has been providing health care and reimbursement for medical costs to veterans and their family members stationed at Camp Lejeune with 15 illnesses related to the toxic water exposure, but they had not awarded presumptive status to any condition…. until now.
Presumptive Service Connection for Camp Lejeune Claims
After years of studies and medical research the VA has finally acknowledged that certain medical conditions are linked to service at Camp Lejeune, and will be granting presumptive service connection for those conditions. This is the latest development in a battle for benefits that has lasted decades. Veterans stationed at Camp Lejeune between 1957 and 1987 will no longer have to prove that their condition was caused by service if it is 1 of the 8 conditions. To be eligible for presumptive service connection, veterans must have served at Camp Lejeune between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987. Presumptive service connection will also extend to those who were in the Reserve and National Guard and served at Camp Lejeune during that time period. The presumption of service connection will apply to new and pending claims. Additionally, veterans who have had their claims denied previously should take the necessary steps to have their claim re-evaluated.
The following conditions will be granted presumptive service connection for qualifying Camp Lejeune veterans:
- Kidney cancer
- Liver cancer
- Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
- Leukemia
- Multiple myeloma
- Scleroderma
- Parkinson’s disease
- Aplastic anemia (or other myelodysplastic syndromes)
The list of conditions for presumptive service connection at least partially overlaps the list of conditions that are eligible for free health care, but as of right now there is no word on whether all 15 conditions on the VA health care list will be added to the presumptive list. So, just because you don’t have one of the eight conditions that has been granted presumptive service connection doesn’t mean that your condition won’t eventually be added to the list. Just like the Agent Orange presumptive list, conditions will likely be added over the years as more medical research comes to light.
What Does It All Mean?
Once the VA issues a final regulation, the eight conditions will officially receive presumptive service connection. This means that it will become much easier for Camp Lejeune veterans that have one (or more) of the eight conditions to get the disability benefits they deserve. In order to establish successful claims, Camp Lejeune veterans have had to show evidence of a current diagnosis, evidence of an in-service accident or event, and evidence that the current diagnosis was caused by the in-service event. In other words, Camp Lejeune veterans have had to prove direct service connection. With the new presumptive list, Camp Lejeune veterans will no longer have to prove that their condition (if it is one of the above eight conditions) was caused or aggravated by their military service. Instead, Camp Lejeune veterans will only need to prove that they have a current diagnosis and that the served at Camp Lejeune during the specified time period.
Until the VA issues a final regulation, disability claims for the above conditions will continue to be decided according to the current laws. So, if a claim for service connection for one of the eight conditions would be denied under the current regulations, it will still be denied until the proposed regulation becomes official. Does that mean you should wait until the regulation is final to file a claim if you have not already done so? NO. It is best to file your claim now in order to establish your effective date.
Although presumptive service connection will lighten the amount of evidence needed to establish a successful claim, there are still errors the VA can (and likely will) make. Getting service connection is the first battle, and an important one at that. However the fight might not be over. Be sure to check the rating percentage assigned to your condition along with the effective date assigned. The VA frequently gets the rating and effective date wrong, and this can have a potentially huge impact on the amount of benefits you receive.
Just like with effective dates and rating percentages, the VA makes mistakes when it comes to secondary conditions and evaluating the symptoms of a condition. Don’t forget to consider that you may have, or develop, conditions secondary to one of the conditions on the presumptive list. For example, if you suffer from depression because of your service connected condition, the depression is automatically service connected (you would not have to prove the depression was caused by military service). Also, be sure to pay attention to the symptoms of your service-connected condition. Sometimes symptoms can receive a separate rating. For example, a veteran with scleroderma may suffer from Raynaud’s syndrome. Raynaud’s syndrome has its own rating criteria and should be rating separately from the scleroderma. By paying attention to things like secondary conditions and symptoms that can receive their own rating you can ensure that you receive all of the benefits you are entitled to.
Author Anne Thorn, Hill & Ponton, P.A. Attorney