Senate Acts to Help C-123 Exposure Claims

Thanks to Senator Merkley and his staff, the Senate Appropriations Committee has gotten involved in the C-123 Agent Orange exposure business, and has a clause dealing with us as part of the military construction, VA and related agencies appropriation bill.

This bill may or not be voted upon during the week of June 7-12 but considerable confusion exists about potential filibuster delays.

            COMMITTEE REPORTS

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS
Senate Report 114-57 - To accompany H.R. 2029
May 21, 2015

MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATION BILL, 2016

C-123 Planes and Possible Exposure to Dioxin.—The Committee is aware of the Institute of Medicine» [IOM] study of exposure to herbicide by servicemembers who served on Fairchild UC-123 “Provider” (C-123) aircraft post-Vietnam war. The report, commissioned by VA, states with confidence these servicemembers were exposed to potentially dangerous levels of dioxin. Given IOM’s recent finding, the Department is directed to report to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of Congress within 14 days of enactment of this act on plans to provide appropriate care and benefits to servicemembers who flew or worked on C-123 planes that carried and sprayed Agent Orange and to revisit past and existing related claims previously denied.