Agent Orange

A law passed Jan. 1 expanded the list of conditions eligible for VA benefits.

The research also discovered that the exposed vets were diagnosed an average of 15 months earlier than non-exposed veterans.

The measure would give 34K vets with hypothyroidism, bladder cancer or Parkinsonism access to compensation and care.

34K Vietnam vets were exposed to herbicides and later diagnosed with bladder cancer, Parkinsonism or hypothyroidism.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has no plans to challenge a court ruling last week.

Nearly half of the more than 69,000 claims for "Blue Water Navy" Agent Orange benefits have been processed.

As Congress' year draws to an end, senators have ramped up efforts to add to the list of illnesses linked to herbicide use.

Senators voted to add bladder cancer, hypothyroidism and Parkinsonism to the list of Agent Orange presumptives.

They would add three diseases to the VA's Agent Orange presumptives list but leave off hypertension.

Two groups published a paper saying that vets who served on Guam between 1962 and 1975 likely were exposed to herbicides.