The 'blue water' Navy veterans of the Vietnam War battle Agent Orange

Alfred Procopio Jr. left the Navy in 1967, decorated with medals for his service on the USS Intrepid, an aircraft carrier deployed off the coast of Vietnam. He also came home with health problems the U.S. government has linked to exposure to the toxic herbicide Agent Orange.

Procopio is one of an estimated 52,000 veterans nationwide who were stationed on ships during the Vietnam War but are not eligible for the same disability benefits as those who put boots on the ground or patrolled the country’s inland rivers.

His case, argued in December at a federal appeals court in Washington, could extend coverage for ailments associated with the infamous herbicide to a group of sailors known as the “blue water” Navy veterans.

Parallel efforts in Congress to broaden benefits have stalled in recent years.

This spring, the House unanimously approved a measure, but the Senate balked in December because of concerns about cost and demands for more scientific study.

“We do not have another year to wait. Some of our veterans will not last that long,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) said on the Senate floor. “It doesn’t make any sense.”


https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/legal-issues/the-blue-water-navy-veterans-of-the-vietnam-war-battle-agent-orange/2018/12/28/d9f8a9ea-ff09-11e8-ad40-cdfd0e0dd65a_story.html