Homeland Security for Veterans

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Homeland Security for Veterans

In his State of the Union address, President Bush sketched out a smart plan

to increase military spending as our country fights the war on terrorism. As

a veteran, I support his position that " our men and women in uniform deserve

the best weapons, the best equipment, the best training, and they also

deserve a pay raise. " However, I thought there was an important national

defense point our President failed to make - the plight of our nation's

veterans suffering from toxic exposures.

Soldiers and sailors have repeatedly returned from overseas conflicts only

to have to deal with debilitating physical ailments stemming from Agent

Orange, Gulf War Syndrome, radiation exposure, or asbestos.

The asbestos ordeal is a shining example of the nation's failure to watch

out for our veterans. Beginning around World War II, the Navy mandated the

use of asbestos on ships as insulation and a fire retardant. Its use

continued through the 1960s, even though the Navy knew the dangers.

Many of the men who served on these ships have since gotten sick with fatal

diseases like mesothelioma. These diseases carry high costs for medical

treatment and lost wages.

Military veterans have a couple of options to get help with these costs.

They can file claims through the Veterans Affairs Department (the VA), or

file a claim in a civil court of law. All veterans know that the VA can be

slow, cumbersome, and unresponsive. But, the civil claims process can be

even worse.

Sick victims who seek compensation through the courts are too often forced

to wait too long for too little.

While, we've all heard of multi-million dollar asbestos settlements,

unfortunately, too often the money doesn't get to those who need it when

they need it.

This is true for a number of reasons:

The first is time. A panel convened by Supreme Court Chief Justice

Rehnquist found that because there are so many asbestos claims, suits can

take nearly twice as long as other liability suits to get processed. In

fact, many victims actually die before there cases are completed.

The second reason is the costs. Rehnquist's panel also found that victims

can receive as little as 37 cents for every dollar they are awarded. The

rest goes to lawyers and administrative fees.

It's clear this system is broken, and it needs to be fixed - fast. Veterans

who are sick and dying because they served their country deserve our

support. The only way to do this is for Congress to step up to the plate.

Our politicians in Washington need to create a new system that ensures all

victims get the help they need, when they need it.

Hopefully, our troops fighting terrorists will get the support they need and

come home safely. Hopefully, their ordeal ends when they reach America's

shores. But as we send them our hopes and prayers, we must not forget the

veterans who already served their country - veterans who continue to fight

battles everyday against deadly illness and a system that doesn't seem to

care.

by Ron Gascon, State Commander

VT Dept. of the Veterans of Foreign Wars