For many years, benzene, trichloroethylene, and perchloroethylene were found in the well water at Camp Lejeune, a Marine Corps base in North Carolina. The people who were hurt may get full payment. As part of the Honoring Our PACT Act, which helps veterans who were hurt by dangerous situations while serving their country, Congress is about to pass the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022, which focuses on four decades of water poisoning. If the bill passes, anyone whose water supply was tainted at Camp Lejeune will be able to sue for damages. As a result of the act, the process for getting disability benefits from the VA will be made easier, and the benefits will be raised.
More benefits for cancer victims
Camp Lejeune water contamination from 1953 to 1987 had serious effects on people’s health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Malignancies include cancers of the bladder, kidney, liver, multiple myeloma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and Parkinson’s disease. Pollution has been linked to more babies being born with problems. People got sick because the water was contaminated. State law in North Carolina says that a veteran with cancer who wants to file a lawsuit must have been told they have cancer within 10 years of the harmful act. Under the new law, everyone will have a court date.
Everyone who has been hurt has a way to get compensation
The doctrine of sovereign immunity cannot be used by the federal government in the case of polluted water. All veterans who served at Camp Lejeune for at least 30 days straight and their families are eligible. Over 900,000 veterans, family members, and nearby civilians may have been exposed to dangerous water at Camp Lejeune because of industrial spills, underground storage tanks, and a dry cleaning business that was not on the base. In the 1980s, tests on the water confirmed what people had thought for a while: that there was something wrong with the water supply.
What chemicals were found in the water?
Trichloroethylene, a degreasing solvent, is often let out into the air as a vapor. It is a part of paint thinners and carpet cleaners. Several types of cancer in people have been linked to it. Perchloroethylene, also called tetrachloroethylene, is used for many things, such as dry cleaning, making textiles, and cleaning metal. It has been linked to several types of cancer and can be found in groundwater that people drink. The result is that babies are born with birth defects. With the help of benzene, you can make plastics, oils, pesticides, and cleaners. Fires and volcanoes can also make it on their own. In low-lying places, this water evaporates quickly. Leukemia and other types of blood diseases have been linked to cancer.
The number of approval on claims will go up.
Even though most people couldn’t get to the poisoned wells at Camp Lejeune after 1985, the effects are still being felt by some people today. As agreed in 2017, veterans who were exposed to dirty water can get disability benefits from the federal government worth more than $2 billion. The Veterans Administration has been giving benefits to disabled veterans for a long time, but most of their claims are turned down. Many former military members don’t like the way things are now and want new laws to change things.
