THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, September 7, 1996 TAG: 9609070223
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: 42 lines
Satisfied that there is a possible link between Agent Orange and birth defects, the Senate has passed a bill that would give federal benefits to Vietnam War veterans whose children suffer from spina bifida.
If the House goes along and President Clinton signs the measure, it would mark the first time dependents of those exposed to the powerful herbicide would be eligible for benefits.
Some senators questioned evidence of a link between Agent Orange exposure and the crippling neural defect, but they were overruled Thursday by lawmakers who said veterans should be given the benefit of the doubt.
Seeking to avoid an outright vote against veterans, opponents of the measure first tried a technical procedure to rule it out of order. They were defeated 62-35. The measure then was approved by voice vote.
The amendment to a fiscal 1997 spending bill would extend health care and related benefits, including a monthly monetary allowance, to Vietnam veterans' children suffering from spina bifida. It was offered by Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., a longtime advocate of helping those veterans who returned home sick after exposure to the defoliant used to clear jungles in Vietnam.
Reps. Luis Gutierrez and Lane Evans, both Illinois Democrats, have introduced similar legislation in the House that would provide monthly allowances of up to $1,200 for veterans with disabled children.
The National Academy of Sciences, in findings released earlier this year, concluded that there was ``limited or suggestive evidence'' of an association between Agent Orange and spina bifida.
That was weaker than the academy's strongest category of ``sufficient evidence'' of a link, but enough for President Clinton and the VA to urge Congress to extend benefits to exposed veterans whose children suffer from the birth defect.
The VA estimates that up to 3,000 children of Vietnam veterans may be afflicted with spina bifida.
KEYWORDS: AGENT ORANGE BIRTH DEFECTS VIETNAM VETERANS by CNB