I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4036
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish certain presumptions
of service connection for veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 11, 1998
Mr. SHAYS (for himself, Mr. TOWNS, Mr. SNOWBARGER, Mr. SANDERS, Mr.
GILMAN, Ms. NORTON, Mr. BURTON of Indiana, Mr. METCALF, Mr.
MCHUGH, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Mr.
MCINTOSH, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. PAPPAS, Mr. SOUDER,
Mr. WAXMAN, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. KENNEDY of Massachusetts, Mr.
DAVIS of Virginia, Mrs. JOHNSON of Connecticut, and Mr. UPTON) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veter-
ans’ Affairs
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish certain
presumptions of service connection for veterans who
served in the Persian Gulf War, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Persian Gulf War Vet-
erans Health Act of 1998’’.
SEC. 2. PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE CONNECTION FOR ILL-
NESSES ASSOCIATED WITH SERVICE IN THE
PERSIAN GULF DURING THE PERSIAN GULF
WAR.
(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) Subchapter II of chapter 11
of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at
the end the following:
‘‘§ 1118. Presumptions of service connection for ill-
nesses associated with service in the Per-
sian Gulf during the Persian Gulf War
‘‘(a)(1) For purposes of section 1110 of this title, and
subject to section 1113 of this title, each illness described
in paragraph (2) or identified pursuant to subsection (b)
shall be considered to have been incurred in or aggravated
by service referred to in that paragraph, notwithstanding
that there is no record of evidence of such illness during
the period of such service.
‘‘(2) An illness referred to in paragraph (1) is any
diagnosed or undiagnosed illness that—
‘‘(A) the Secretary determines in regulations
prescribed under this section to warrant a presump-
tion of service connection by reason of having a posi-
tive association with exposure to a biological, chemi-
cal, or other toxic agent or environmental or war-
time hazard known or presumed to be associated
with service in the Armed Forces in the Southwest
Asia theater of operations during the period begin-
ning on August 2, 1990, and ending on December
31, 1991; and
‘‘(B) becomes manifest in a Persian Gulf War
veteran who by reason of service in Southwest Asia
during the period beginning on August 2, 1990, and
ending on December 31, 1991, was exposed to such
agent or hazard.
‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, a Persian Gulf
War veteran who has an illness described in paragraph
(2) shall be presumed to have been exposed by reason of
such service to the agent or hazard associated with the
illness in the regulations prescribed under this subsection
unless there is conclusive evidence to establish that the
veteran was not exposed to the agent or hazard by reason
of such service.
‘‘(b)(1) The Secretary shall enter into a contract with
an appropriate independent scientific body to establish a
panel for the purpose of reviewing the medical and sci-
entific literature to identify those diseases and illnesses
epidemiologically, medically, or scientifically associated
with exposure of humans or animals to any of the mate-
rials specified in subsection (c). The panel shall be com-
posed of non-Government scientific experts representing,
at minimum, the disciplines of toxicology, immunology,
microbiology, molecular biology, genetics, biochemistry,
chemistry, epidemiology, medicine, and public health.
‘‘(2) The Secretary shall require that the panel sub-
mit to the Secretary, not later than one year after the
date of the enactment of this section, a report, based upon
the review under paragraph (1), identifying such diseases
and illnesses.
‘‘(3) Upon submission to the Secretary of the report
under paragraph (2), each disease or illness identified in
the report that becomes manifest in a Persian Gulf War
veteran shall be presumed to be service-connected.
‘‘(4) There is authorized to be appropriated to the
Secretary $1,000,000 to carry out this subsection.
‘‘(5) The specification of presumed exposures in sub-
section (c) shall be updated as information develops con-
firming the exposure of Persian Gulf War veterans or
members of their families to additional chemical, biologi-
cal, radiological, or other genotoxic or infectious materials.
The Secretary shall periodically enter into a contract as
described in paragraph (1) for the purposes of identifying
and confirming such exposures. Upon submission to the
Secretary of a report pursuant to such a contract, the Sec-
retary shall add each disease or illness identified in the
report that becomes manifest in a Persian Gulf War vet-
eran to those diseases and illnesses that are presumed
under this section to be service-connected.
‘‘(c) PRESUMPTION OF EXPOSURE.—Each Persian
Gulf War veteran shall be presumed to have been exposed
to the following potentially hazardous materials:
‘‘(1) The following organophosphorous pes-
ticides:
‘‘(A) Chlorpyrifos.
‘‘(B) Diazinon.
‘‘(C) Dichlorvos.
‘‘(D) Malathion.
‘‘(2) The following carbamate pesticides:
‘‘(A) Proxpur.
‘‘(B) Carbaryl.
‘‘(C) Methomyl.
‘‘(3) The following carbamate used as nerve
agent prophylaxis:
‘‘(A) Pyridostigmine bromide.
‘‘(4) The following chlorinated dydrocarbon and
other pesticides and repellents:
‘‘(A) Lindane.
‘‘(B) Pyrethroids.
‘‘(C) Rodenticides (bait).
‘‘(D) Repellent (DEET).
‘‘(5) The following low-level nerve agents and
precursors compounds:
‘‘(A) Sarin.
‘‘(B) Tabun.
‘‘(6) The following other synthetic chemical
compounds:
‘‘(A) Low-level mustard agents.
‘‘(B) VOCs.
‘‘(C) Hydrazine.
‘‘(D) Red fuming nitric acid.
‘‘(E) Solvents.
‘‘(F) Uranium.
‘‘(7) The following ionizing radiation:
‘‘(A) Depleted uranium.
‘‘(B) Microwave.
‘‘(C) RF radiation.
‘‘(8) The following environmental particulates
and pollutants:
‘‘(A) Hydrogen sulfide.
‘‘(B) Oil fire byproducts.
‘‘(C) Diesel heater fumes.
‘‘(D) Sand micro-particles.
‘‘(9) Diseases endemic to the region (including
the following):
‘‘(A) Leishmaniasis.
‘‘(B) Sandfly fever.
‘‘(C) Pathogenic escherechia coli.
‘‘(D) Shigellosis.
‘‘(E) Malaria.
‘‘(10) Time compressed administration of mul-
tiple live, ‘‘attenuated,’’ and toxoid vaccines.
‘‘(d) For purposes of this section:
‘‘(1) The term ‘Persian Gulf War veteran’
means a veteran who served on active duty in the
Southwest Asia theater of operations during the pe-
riod beginning on August 2, 1990, and ending on
December 31, 1991.
‘‘(2) The term ‘non-Government scientific ex-
pert’ means an individual who is a scientific expert
who (A) is not employed by the United States, and
(B) received less than 15 percent of income during
the preceding 12 months from federally funded re-
search activities.’’.
(2) The table of sections at the beginning of such
chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating
to section 1117 the following new item:
‘‘1118. Presumptions of service connection for illnesses associated with service
in the Persian Gulf during the Persian Gulf War.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 1113 of
title 38, United States Code, is amended—