The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Northeast Ohio Healthcare System has been eaching out directly by postal mail to hundreds of veterans with cancer who may have been exposed to Agent Orange or contaminated water at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Advocates say they’ve connected dozens to “service-connected” benefits that pay for 100% of the veterans’ care and can potentially provide support to their spouses after they pass away.
The details and outcomes of the outreach project were presented at the 2021 annual meeting of the Association of VA Hematology/Oncology (AVAHO) being held virtually and in person in Denver, Colorado, from September 24 to September 26, 2021.
“Once you get a devastating diagnosis like cancer, you’ve got enough going on in your head. You shouldn’t have to worry about what the next step is in the benefit process,” said VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System outreach coordinator Willie J. Berry in an interview. “We want you to focus on your care and not have to worry about anything else.”
Agent Orange, made up of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, was used to defoliate forests and kill crops during the Vietnam War. Through “100% service connection” the VA fully covers benefits for certain cancers and other diseases for veterans who are considered to have been exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam and elsewhere.
Veterans do not need to pay copays in these cases, Berry said, and care outside the VA may be fully funded once arrangements are made.
The VA also fully covers benefits for a similar list of diseases, also including some types of cancer, for veterans who are considered to have been exposed to a contaminated water supply at Camp Lejeune in the early 1980s.
Vietnam War veterans may not be aware of the Agent Orange benefits due to a negative perception of the VA, Berry said. “They were treated poorly [by the VA] and didn’t want to have anything to do with it.”
In the first phase of the project, the VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System tried to reach potentially eligible veterans with both cancer and possible Agent Orange exposure via phone. Seventy veterans were referred to outreach coordinators, and 16 received 100% service connection after 6 months. The latter number later grew to 34.
“The most inefficient thing were doing was calling veterans one by one,” Berry said. “We felt a mailer would be more efficient in order to reach more people.”
For the second phase, in 2021, coordinators sent informational “Dear veteran” mailers to 427 veterans with cancer who may be eligible for special Agent Orange/Camp Lejeune benefits based on their service history.
The Agent Orange letters began this way: “Through a recent medical diagnosis, VA has identified you as possibly being impacted by a change in Agent Orange Exposure legislation.” The letters then list the eligible conditions, which as of 2021 now include bladder cancer, hyperthyroidism and parkinsonism.
The letters also note that “claims often enhance a veteran’s VA compensation and reduce their cost of care. Additionally, if a veteran were to succumb to a diagnosis that they were service connected for, their spouse might be able to receive both VA health care (until the age of Medicare eligibility) as well as financial benefits for the rest of their life.”