Blumenthal Applauds Final Passage of Bipartisan Blue Water Navy Veterans Act

[WASHINGTON, DC] – Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) applauded Congressional passage of the bipartisan Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act, which would ensure that thousands of Navy veterans, and their families, exposed to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War are able to receive the health care and benefits they earned. After the Senate approved the bill with unanimous support earlier today, it now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law. Blumenthal has long advocated for passage of this legislation.

“The old adage ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ has meant decades of suffering the effects of Agent Orange for thousands of veterans who have been deprived of fair compensation for injuries they received in Vietnam. These brave Americans risked their lives serving our country, but because they served with boots aboard ships instead of boots on the ground, they’ve been denied simple justice, year after year. I am deeply grateful to the Blue Water Navy Veterans who spoke out in town halls, who traveled to Washington, and who kept on pressing for action. I wish we had acted sooner, but I am grateful to see this bill finally signed into law and justice served,” Blumenthal said.

In speeches on the Senate floor, Blumenthal has frequently shared the story of Army veteran, Eugene Clarke of Redding, Connecticut. Mr. Clarke has spent years fighting on behalf of veterans who served in Korea in the 1960s and were exposed to Agent Orange. Mr. Clarke was instrumental in providing evidence that defoliants were sprayed during testing prior to 1968. Today, only veterans who served on the Korean DMZ from April 1968 through August 1971 are eligible for presumption. This bill includes legislation Blumenthal led with U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Jon Tester (D-MT) – the Fairness for Korean DMZ Veterans Act – which would change the presumptive dates to cover veterans who served during the testing period of Agent Orange.  

During the Vietnam War, the U.S. military sprayed approximately 20 million gallons of Agent Orange in Vietnam to remove jungle foliage. This toxic chemical had devastating health effects on millions serving in Vietnam.

In 1991, Congress passed a law requiring the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide presumptive coverage to all Vietnam veterans with illnesses that the Institute of Medicine has directly linked to Agent Orange exposure, including those who were stationed on ships off the Vietnamese coast, also known as Blue Water Navy veterans.

However, in 2002, the VA decided that it would only cover Veterans who could prove that they had orders for “boots on the ground” during the Vietnam War. This exclusion has prevented thousands of sailors from receiving benefits even though they had significant Agent Orange exposure from drinking and bathing in contaminated water just offshore.

Blumenthal will continue to fight on behalf of all veterans suffering from illnesses linked to Agent Orange. Inspired by a Connecticut constituent and Army veteran, Gerry Wright, Blumenthal introduced the Agent Orange Exposure Fairness Act. This bill seeks to remove the one-year manifestation period for certain illnesses linked to Agent Orange – removing arbitrary obstacles that are preventing access to benefits for veterans living with the aftereffects of toxic exposure.

-30-