Research - Rehabilitation - Re-Employment
Dear Sgt. Shaft,
I had contacted you a few months ago and just wanted to follow up with you. My name is Ben Grayson and I'm the Veteran Liaison for the Mesothelioma Center (Asbestos.com), an organization devoted to assisting veterans through their application processes for VA benefits and helping them obtain the maximum benefits for which they are entitled. While browsing through a number of veteran-related Web sites, I came across yours.
Countless veterans are currently suffering from life-threatening illnesses that are a result of exposure to asbestos, a material that was commonly used in hundreds of military applications, products and ships, primarily because of its resistance to fire. Unfortunately, asbestos-related diseases are not always recognized by the VA. I'm reaching out to veterans in hopes of helping them win the rights to their benefits.
The Mesothelioma Center provides a complete list of occupations, ships, and shipyards that could have put our Veterans at risk for developing asbestos-related diseases. We have a veterans-specific section on our Web site in order to help inform them about the dangers of asbestos exposure.
Because so many veterans visit your site, I thought that you may be interested in helping to educate our nation's veterans about the dangers of asbestos exposure by featuring our link on your site at bavf.org/links.htm.
Ben G
Dear Ben,
My sources at VA tell me that each claim for service connection resulting from asbestos exposure is reviewed individually, taking into consideration:
* whether the veteran was exposed to asbestos during service, based upon service records;
* whether the veteran was exposed to asbestos either before or after service; and
* whether a relationship exists between exposure to asbestos and the claimed disease, taking into account latency and exposure factors.
Determination of service connection will be based on review of the entire evidence of record. Since no presumption of service connection is applicable to disabilities resulting from asbestos exposure, service connection requires showing inception or aggravation during service.
Shaft Notes
The Sarge is looking forward to joining invited guests and the general public as we celebrate Flag Week on Capitol Hill. There will be a special performance on June 15 at the Capitol by the Aloha Boys, a group that was born and raised in Hawaii and later transplanted to the D.C. area.
The concert, which begins at 2 p.m. in the Caucus Room of the Cannon House Office Building, will also feature Hawaiian-born blind singer Milton Koja. For more information, call 202/462-4430.
The concert will be preceded by the Blinded American Veterans Association's 25th annual Congressional Awards reception, which honors the Aloha Boys and others, including Congressmen Steve Buyer, Indiana Republican, and John Hall, New York Democrat.
The George Alexander Memorial Volunteer Award will be presented to Everett Alvarez Jr., the longest-held POW from the Vietnam war, and E. Lakis Karavangelos. The Corporate Volunteer Award will be presented to the American Academy of Ophthalmology.
Military casualties of the Fort Hood shootings could be eligible for the Purple Heart later this year. Legislative language authored by Congressman John Carter, Texas Republican, has been scheduled as an amendment to this week's House markup of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2011.
House Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Howard "Buck" McKeon, California Republican, and Congressman Mike Coffman, Colorado Republican, will introduce language that Mr. Carter originated to give casualties of the Nov. 4 mass shooting the same status as combat casualties and the casualties of the Sept. 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon.
Send letters to Sgt. Shaft, c/o John Fales, P.O. Box 65900, Washington, D.C. 20035-5900; fax to 301-622-3330; call 202-257-5446 or email sgtshaft@bavf.org.
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