Related Topics ► Other TopicsLimits on Seeking Compensation from the Government
Veterans suffering with asbestos-related cancers and diseases are caught in quite a conundrum, as they currently have no means of seeking compensation through the present government system. Prohibited by law, veterans are not legally allowed to seek compensation from the U.S. government through the court system. Despite having served their country, and despite having survived the horrid throes of war, the government has turned its cheek to thousands of veterans plagued with asbestos-related illnesses.
What the government does provide to veterans is the option to seek assistance through the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). However, this proves to be a discouraging and overwhelming venture. Veterans are allowed to apply for VA benefits concerning asbestos-related diseases, but asbestos-induced illnesses such as mesothelioma are not recognized by the VA as a "service-connected" medical condition. Additionally, the burden of proof is grueling and nearly impossible to attain.
To begin with, a veteran must provide irrefutable evidence that their condition is asbestos-related. Secondly, veterans must present proof that their asbestos exposure indisputably occurred during military service and at no time before or after. Unfortunately, pervasive use of the toxic material prior to the 1970s makes it extremely difficult to prove exposure solely occurred in military service.
On top of all this, it is astoundingly arduous to confirm which asbestos-laden product caused the contamination (and subsequently what company produced the product). Unfair as it may be, if an ailing veteran cannot provide evidence that their exposure to asbestos is completely isolated to their military service, the government requires them to seek compensation via asbestos companies.
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