I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2510 

To direct the Secretary of Defense to establish within the Department of 

Defense centers of excellence in the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, 

treatment, and rehabilitation of health conditions relating to exposure 

to open burn pits. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 26, 2013 

Mr. BISHOP of New York (for himself, Mr. JONES, Ms. DEGETTE, and Mr. 

COOPER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To direct the Secretary of Defense to establish within the 

Department of Defense centers of excellence in the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and rehabilitation of health conditions relating to exposure to open 

burn pits. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Helping Veterans Ex5 posed to Toxic Chemicals Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE IN PREVENTION, DIAG2 NOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND REHA3 BILITATION OF HEALTH CONDITIONS RELAT4 ING TO EXPOSURE TO OPEN BURN PITS AND 

5 OTHER EXPOSURE TO OPEN BURN PITS AND 

6 OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURES. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Defense 

8 shall establish within the Department of Defense three 

9 centers of excellence in the prevention, diagnosis, mitiga10 tion, treatment, and rehabilitation of health conditions re11 lating to exposure to open burn pits and other environ12 mental exposures to carry out the responsibilities specified 

13 in subsection (c). Such centers shall be established 

14 using— 

15 (1) the directives, policies, and Comptroller 

16 General and Inspector General recommendations in 

17 effect as of the date of the enactment of this Act; 

18 and 

19 (2) guidance issued pursuant to section 313 of 

20 the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 

21 Year 2013 (Public Law 112–239; 126 Stat. 1692; 

22 10 U.S.C. 1074 note). 

23 (b) SELECTION OF SITES.—In selecting sites for the 

24 centers of excellence under subsection (a), the Secretary 

25 of Defense shall select entities that— 


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1 (1) are equipped with the specialized equipment 

2 needed to study, diagnose, and treat health condi3 tions relating to exposure to open burn pits and 

4 other environmental exposures; 

5 (2) have a publication track record of post-de6 ployment health exposures among veterans from 

7 Iraq and Afghanistan; 

8 (3) have collaborated with a geosciences depart9 ment that has a medical geology division; 

10 (4) have developed animal models and in vitro 

11 models of dust immunology and lung injury from 

12 Iraq and Afghanistan; and 

13 (5) have expertise in allergy and immunology, 

14 pulmonary diseases, and industrial and management 

15 engineering. 

16 (c) PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary shall ensure that 

17 the centers collaborate to the maximum extent practicable 

18 with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, institutions of 

19 higher education, and other appropriate public and private 

20 entities (including international entities) to carry out the 

21 responsibilities specified in subsection (d). 

22 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The center shall have re23 sponsibilities as follows: 

24 (1) To implement the comprehensive plan and 

25 strategy for the Department of Defense for the preVerDate Mar 15 2010 22:23 Jul 01, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2510.IH H2510

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1 vention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and reha2 bilitation of health conditions relating to exposure to 

3 open burn pits and other environmental exposures. 

4 (2) To provide for the development, testing, and 

5 dissemination within the Department of best prac6 tices for the treatment of health conditions relating 

7 to exposure to open burn pits and other environ8 mental exposures. 

9 (3) To provide guidance for the health system 

10 of the Department in determining the personnel re11 quired to provide quality health care for members of 

12 the Armed Forces with health conditions relating to 

13 exposure to open burn pits and other environmental 

14 exposures. 

15 (4) To establish, implement, and oversee a com16 prehensive program to train health professionals of 

17 the Department in the treatment of health condi18 tions relating to exposure to open burn pits and 

19 other environmental exposures. 

20 (5) To facilitate advancements in the study of 

21 the short-term and long-term effects of exposure to 

22 open burn pits and other environmental exposures. 

23 (6) To disseminate within the military medical 

24 treatment facilities of the Department best practices 

25 for training health professionals with respect to 


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1 health conditions relating to exposure to open burn 

2 pits and other environmental exposures. 

3 (7) To conduct basic science and translational 

4 research on health conditions relating to exposure to 

5 open burn pits and other environmental exposures 

6 for the purposes of understanding the etiology of 

7 such conditions and developing preventive interven8 tions and new treatments. 

9 (8) To provide medical treatment to all veterans 

10 identified as part of the burn pits registry estab11 lished under section 201 of the Dignified Burial and 

12 Other Veterans’ Benefits Improvement Act of 2012 

13 (Public Law 112–260; 38 U.S.C. 527 note). 

14 (e) USE OF BURN PITS REGISTRY DATA.—In car15 rying out its responsibilities under subsection (c), the cen16 ter shall have access to and make use of the data accumu17 lated by the burn pits registry established under section 

18 201 of the Dignified Burial and Other Veterans’ Benefits 

19 Improvement Act of 2012 (Public Law 112–260; 38 

20 U.S.C. 527 note). 

21 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

22 (1) The term ‘‘open burn pit’’ means an area 

23 of land located in Afghanistan or Iraq that— 


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1 (A) is designated by the Secretary of De2 fense to be used for disposing solid waste by 

3 burning in the outdoor air; and 

4 (B) does not contain a commercially manu5 factured incinerator or other equipment specifi6 cally designed and manufactured for the burn7 ing of solid waste. 

8 (2) The term ‘‘other environmental exposures’’ 

9 means exposure to environmental hazards, including 

10 burn pits, dust or sand, hazardous materials, and 

11 waste at any site in Afghanistan or Iraq that emits 

12 smoke containing pollutants present in the environ13 ment or smoke from fires or explosions. 

14 (g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

15 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

16 $30,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2019. 

Æ 


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