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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2015 - 2016
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | August 31, 2015 10:45 AM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Stephen Barrar |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Toxic Exposure Research Act of 2015 |
| I plan to introduce a resolution that urges Congress and the President of the United States to enact H.R.1769, the Toxic Exposure Research Act of 2015. During their service, many veterans have come into contact with various toxic chemicals, including Agent Orange and other dioxin-contaminated herbicides during the Vietnam War, various neurotoxins during the Gulf War, and chemical weapons and burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan during Operations Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom, and New Dawn. This exposure has been linked to certain presumptive diseases that may affect both the veterans who were exposed, and their children and grandchildren. There are also unexplained service-connected ailments and undetected residual medical conditions, including potential congenital malformations, resulting from exposure to toxic chemicals, the extent, composition, and effects of which we do not yet understand. The Toxic Exposure Research Act of 2015, H.R.1769 is a bipartisan bill that has been introduced in Congress to create a national center within the Department of Veterans Affairs to research treatment and diagnosis of health conditions of descendants of veterans exposed to toxins during their military service. This measure would also authorize the Department of Defense to declassify certain incidents of exposure by service members to toxic substances, create a database of congenital anomalies, and devise a national outreach campaign on the potential long-term health effects of exposure to toxic substances on service members and their descendants. The goal of this medical research is to determine the conditions that result from debilitating toxins and hopefully lead to the appropriate support and benefits veterans and family members deserve. Given the importance and potential impact of such a measure on veterans and future generations living in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, I hope you will join me in supporting the passage of H.R. 1769. |
Introduced as HR527