We have a duty to take care of our veterans, but we’re letting them die

Veterans Day 2017 has passed with all of its hoopla and hype. There were ceremonies throughout the nation as politicians joined with civic leaders to pay homage to those who have served. Sports teams such as the New Orleans Saints took time for some flashy “salutes” even as their players took a knee during or immediately before the national anthem. Now, veterans are forgotten for the next 364 days until it is time for another public relations blitz.

Meanwhile, as the first session of the 115th Congress nears the end, many veterans are still denied earned benefits. In a spurt of optimism, 90,000 Blue Water Navy veterans hoped for a miracle as House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) brought a benefit restoration bill to a mark-up session. Even the most pessimistic veterans thought that with over 300 cosponsors and bipartisan support, this bill would pass.

{mosads}Unfortunately, ranking member Tim Walz (D-Minn) opposed the proposed offset, without offering a substitute. Chairman Roe tabled the bill and the hopes of the long-suffering Navy veterans were dashed once again.

Blue Water Navy veterans are not alone. Studies show that the island of Guam, home to a Naval Support Activity and Andersen Air Force Base, was also contaminated by the Agent Orange dioxin. In 2002, 19,000 ppm of dioxin was discovered at Andersen AFB fire fighting training area. An Airman assigned to Guam confirmed that he sprayed Agent Orange throughout the island to control vegetation. A House bill to extend benefits to those who served on Guam is languishing in committee with little support.

The Blue Water Navy veterans and those who served on Guam are the tip of the iceberg. Other Agent Orange victims who served in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Korea, Panama, Okinawa, Samoa and the Marianas are denied proper coverage. Radiation survivors from the 1950s, Gulf War disease veterans and the victims of burn pits receive little coverage.

Those who suffer from water contamination at Camp Lejeune do not receive full benefits and the veterans of the toxic chemicals that pollute the remains of Fort McClellan are simply ignored. Military-Veterans Advocacy estimates 4.5 million veterans are victims of some form of toxic exposure. Few are covered.

In one bright spot, Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin reversed VA opposition to a bill to provide benefits for World War II veterans exposed to mustard gas as an experiment. President Trump signed a bill to ease the pathway to benefits for these veterans this past August.

Helping a few hundred veterans is fine, but Congress and the administration must address the remaining veterans who are dying because of military toxic exposure. The roadblock is the cost. Military-Veterans Advocacy estimates that the cost to provide benefits for these veterans could approach $25 billion over 10 years. Unfortunately, the Pay As You Go Act of 2010  requires an offset new benefits.

Although veteran benefits are exempt from the sequestration provisions of that law, they are not relieved from the offset requirement. Ironically, Walz, who opposed the offset, voted for this provision; Roe voted no. Today Chairman Roe is forced to enforce its provision, while ranking member Walz has the latitude to posture against it.

There seems to be no support in Congress for exempting veterans benefits from the draconian demands of this law. Military-Veterans Advocacy has proposed adding a mandatory $10 fee, called the “freedom fee,” to each tax return that would be dedicated to veterans toxic exposure research and benefits. This idea has generated some interest but little support on the Hill.

Another idea is to curb the end of the fiscal year “spend it or lose it” frenzy as agencies deal with windfalls held back as retainages. This flawed policy results in forced spending sprees every August and September. Although individual members of Congress agree that billions are wasted, no one wants to step forward to oversee and recoup these funds.

While the annual Veterans Day gushing is fine, veterans would be more appreciative if their leaders concentrated on funding priorities for toxic exposure. The prevailing view is that everyone is just waiting for veterans to die so that the problem will solve itself. Unfortunately, wars are going to occur, and veterans will continue to be injured physically and mentally.

It is time to stop the hypocrisy and get to work to solve these problems. Congress and the VA have a constitutional duty to take care of veterans injured in service. It took the World War II veterans more than 70 years to obtain their benefits. Is that the fate that awaits everyone?

John B. Wells is a retired Navy commander who served for 22 years as a surface warfare officer. After retirement, he became an attorney practicing military and veterans law. He is executive director of the nonprofit Military-Veterans Advocacy.