On January 29, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued the groundbreaking decision Procopio v. Wilkie, 913 F. 3d 15H (Fed. Cir. 2019). The Court held that veterans who served in the 12 nautical mile territorial seas of the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam era are entitled to the presumption that they were exposed to Agent Orange. This decision overruled the Court’s previous decision in Haas v. Peake, 525 F.3d 1168 (Fed. Cir. 2008), which held that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) could exclude veterans from the presumption of Agent Orange exposure if they did not set foot on land or serve on the inland waterways of Vietnam.

The Federal Circuit’s decision in Procopio opens the door for tens of thousands of Blue Water Vietnam Veterans or their survivors to obtain service-connected VA disability or death benefits for diseases caused by Agent Orange exposure.

Thanks to Procopio, veterans who served within 12 nautical miles of Vietnam during the Vietnam era are entitled to service connected disability benefits for diseases the VA presumes are associated with Agent Orange exposure.  Those diseases  include ischemic heart disease, type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and numerous cancers. A full list of the diseases that the VA presumes are associated with exposure to  Agent Orange are listed below and can also be found at https://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/agentorange/conditions/.                                                                                                 Survivors of Blue Water Vietnam Veterans who died from one of these diseases are also become entitled to service connected death benefits (known as DIC).

In order to help ensure that the VA identifies and grants Agent Orange - related benefits to all Blue Water Vietnam Veterans who are legally entitled to such benefits, NVLSP would like to obtain some basic information about the disability and death benefits claims previously filed by some veterans or survivors.  We want information from only those veterans or survivors who previously filed a claim based on one or more of the Agent Orange diseases recognized by the VA (which are listed below).  Giving us this information does not mean that NVLSP represents you on any of your claims.  We are only collecting this information for the purpose of giving you advice in the future.  

To give us this basic information, please complete the form below.  If you are unable to complete the form, you can send your information to the National Veterans Legal Services Program by email: bluewater2019@nvlsp.org.  If you cannot email us the form, you can give us this information through our toll-free hotline: 855-333-0677.

According to the VA, if you have an illness you think is caused by contact with Agent Orange—and you don’t see it listed here—you can still file a claim for disability compensation. You’ll ultimately need to provide the VA with  evidence from a medical professional indicating that it is at least as likely as not the  disease resulted from Agent Orange exposure.

As of now,  here’s the list of diseases that the VA has officially recognized as linked to Agent Orange:

Prostate Cancer                                                                                

Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Soft Tissue Sarcomas

Lung Cancer

Trachea Cancer

Larynx Cancer

Multiple Myeloma

Hodgkin's Disease

Type 2 Diabetes

Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia

AL Amyloidosis

Ischemic Heart Disease

Parkinson's Disease

Chronic B-Cell Leukemia

Early-onset Peripheral Neuropathy

Chloracne

Porphyria Cutanea Tarda