He Department of Veterans Affairs has begun the process to designate multiple myeloma and acute and chronic leukemias as linked to military service in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and elsewhere, a change that will give affected veterans faster access to disability compensation.

During his last veterans day In his address as commander in chief, President Joe Biden announced an update to the list of diseases presumed to be related to exposure to burn pits and other airborne contaminants according to the PACT Law.

The change follows an announcement last week by VA Secretary Denis McDonough that bladder cancer and ureteral cancer will be designated as suspected diseasesand veterans who served at Karshi-Khanabad Air Base in Uzbekistan in the early 2000s would also qualify for expedited claims.

Read next: Evaders, volunteers and the complicated situation of military service in Ukraine

“Too many of our nation’s veterans have served only to return home and suffer the permanent effects of poisonous chemicals,” Biden said during his speech Monday at Arlington National Cemetery.

The PACT Act update, which must go through the federal rulemaking process before being finalized, followed a 15-month study by the VA into whether veterans who served in designated areas had higher rates of those cancers. .

the VA launched its own internal process in 2021 to determine whether health conditions can be considered related to military service and has since concluded that asthma, rhinitis, sinusitis, nine rare lung cancers and now bladder cancer, ureter cancer, Acute leukemia, chronic leukemia, and multiple myeloma fall into this category. that category for personnel who served during specific time periods and locations.

Those covered include post-9/11 veterans who served in Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Uzbekistan and Yemen, and those assigned to the Persian Gulf region, including Somalia, beginning on 2 August 1990.

The VA also announced Monday that it intends to make health care less expensive for veterans enrolled in its health system by eliminating co-pays for telehealth services provided at VA facilities.

When specialty care or mental health services are not available at a veteran’s VA hospital or clinic, they can often receive treatment at another VA facility in a telehealth center at their local VA.

The proposal would eliminate co-pays for that service.

The VA also said Monday that it plans to fund a grant program to build VA telehealth connections at non-VA facilities, giving veterans in rural or underserved areas more access to VA care.

In September, the VA announced that veterans will be able to access emergency care from a Department of Veterans Affairs hospital by phone or video. under a new program that links patients experiencing medical problems with a VA provider.

“What people will remember about this period is that this is a new VA, that the VA reached out to veterans instead of expecting veterans to change their lives to fit into the VA,” McDonough said during an appearance on CNN on Veterans Day.

During his last speech to veterans, Biden said that, every day as president, he has carried with him the number of dead and wounded from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan: 4,620 dead and 32,766 wounded in Iraq; 2,465 dead and 20,769 injured in Afghanistan.

Biden has been heavily criticized for the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan that included the deaths of 13 US soldiers at the Kabul airport on August 26, 2021, but said on Monday that he was determined from the start of his term not to let the end of the same. Afghanistan War to another president.

“It has been the greatest honor of my life to lead you, to serve you, to care for you, to defend you, just as you defended us, generation after generation, after generation,” Biden said.

“The world depends on each of you and all of us, on all of you to continue to honor the women, men and families who have endured the battle, to continue to protect everything you have fought for, to continue to strive to heal . the wounds of our nation, to continue perfecting our union,” he stated.

Related: Rural veterans are struggling to access care provided by the VA

The story continues