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Today, Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), in conjunction with Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV), Joaquin Castro (D-TX), Mary Miller (R-IL), André Carson (D-IN), Darren Soto (D-FL), and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), introduced the Panama Canal Zone Veterans Act. This bill provides Panama Canal veterans access to the healthcare they deserve to treat illness contracted through exposure to deadly herbicides.
“Florida is home to numerous veterans who served our country by patrolling the Panama Canal while our military was stationed there,” said Rep. Salazar. “We need to provide our veterans with the healthcare they deserve, and which they need. They risked their lives every day for our country, its only right to be there for them in their time of need.”
The Panama Canal Zone Veterans Act provides veterans who served in the Panama Canal Zone from 1958-1999 the appropriate healthcare benefits and disability compensation associated with their military service. Specifically, it establishes a presumptive exposure to Agent Orange for those that served in active duty in this area. Under a presumption of service-connection, certain conditions diagnosed in veterans are presumed to have been caused by the circumstances of their military service. This means they could receive federal benefits and disability compensation from the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA).
“San Antonio is proud to be Military City, USA because we know how important veterans and their families are to our community and the nation,” said Rep. Castro. “Yet, for too long, America’s veterans have returned home only to fight an uphill battle for the healthcare and benefits they earned. This bill delivers much needed relief and support to those suffering from illnesses that stem from active-duty service in the Panama Canal Zone.”
“Last year the Honoring Our PACT Act, which I was proud to vote for, finally secured critical health care services for veterans who were exposed to toxic burn pits. Similar benefits have been provided to ‘atomic veterans’ with presumption of illnesses caused by exposure to radiation in the South Pacific and at the Nevada Test Site. I’m helping lead this legislation to extend similar protections to even more veterans. It’s the least we can do,” said Rep. Titus.
BACKGROUND:
The Panama Canal Zone was an unincorporated territory of the United States that was established in 1903, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area extending five miles on each side of it. The Zone was of strategic importance to the U.S. military. Although formally abolished in 1979, the area hosted U.S. military personnel up to 1999 when it was turned over to Panama. It housed American workers assigned to the Canal along with military personnel stationed at the Zone’s multiple forts, Air Force Bases, and Naval Station. The number of service members in the Zone grew into the thousands during the Vietnam War.
The text of the bill can be found HERE.
