VA To Review Lejeune Water Cases

More Marine Corps veterans who may have become sick because they were exposed to tainted drinking water at Camp Lejeune, N.C., should become eligible for free health care to treat their maladies. The Department of Veterans Affairs announced Aug. 3 plans to review existing regulations and determine if more Marines who served at Lejeune between Aug. 1, 1953, and Dec. 31, 1987 – when the exposure took place – could qualify for service connection. Ailments related to exposure to the contaminated water include kidney cancer, angiosarcoma of the liver, and acute myelogenous leukemia. Water at the base was contaminated with benzene, vinyl chloride, trichloroethylene and perchloroethylene at the time. The chemicals leeched into the water supply from base storage facilities. Meanwhile, the Marine Corps is asking for all persons who worked or lived on Lejeune during that time to register at https://clnr.hqi.usmc.mil/clwater.