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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Benefits For Gulf War Vets May Be Broadened

Compiled From Wire Services

Key lawmakers said Wednesday they are considering blanket disability benefits for Persian Gulf War veterans suffering from mystery ailments.

The senior members of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee said such a blanket disability measure may be the only way of dealing fairly with the tens of thousands of veterans who complain of a variety of unexplained ailments such as fatigue, muscle ache and memory loss.

“It may be that we have to come to the conclusion of presumptive disability as we did in the Agent Orange case,” said Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., the committee chairman.

Agent Orange, a chemical defoliant used by U.S. forces in Vietnam, was determined years later to be linked to cancer and other ailments. The government now extends benefits to veterans and their children suffering from diseases with proven links to Agent Orange exposure.

Scientists have yet to establish a single cause or even group of causes for the cluster of unexplained illnesses sometimes referred to as “Gulf War Syndrome.” Veterans and active-duty service members who served in the Gulf are already covered for medical treatment, regardless of their illness. Those with diagnosable ailments linked to their Gulf service, such as wounds, can receive disability payments.

The VA also provides disability payments to those with undiagnosed diseases, provided they can show they developed the ailment no more than two years after the war. The Clinton administration is considering extending that time frame. The measure Specter and others are considering would automatically extend disability payments even if an illness cannot be specifically linked to Gulf War service.