VA presumes that specific disabilities diagnosed in certain veterans were caused by their military service. VA does this because of the unique circumstances of their military service. If one of these conditions is diagnosed in a Veteran in one of these groups, VA presumes that the circumstances of his/her service caused the condition, and disability compensation can be awarded.
The following diseases and conditions are considered to be part of this program:
Southwest Asia and Persian Gulf
You may be eligible for VA health and disability benefits if you served any amount of time in the Southwest Asia theater of operations from Aug. 2, 1990, to the present, or Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Uzbekistan or Yemen from Sept. 11, 2001, to the present.
Any veteran who has or had one of the following cancers at any time during or after separation from military service may be eligible for disability compensation benefits. VA will contact impacted veterans and survivors to inform them about their eligibility and will provide information on how to apply.
Veterans, survivors or dependents who had claims previously denied for any of these respiratory cancers are encouraged to file a supplemental claim for benefits.
The thanks they get—