WASHINGTON — The Illinois Association of County Veterans Assistance Commissions filed a complaint in federal court seeking access under the Freedom of Information Act for Blue Water Veteran documents the Department of Veterans Affairs has refused to turn over. They are seeking details on a hidden procedure by the VA to adjudicate claims by Veterans who served in the offshore waters of the Republic of Vietnam between 1962 and 1975. These veterans are known as Blue Water Veterans. For decades, Vietnam War Veterans have had to fight to get the recognition and benefits to which they are entitled, including service-connected disability benefits from the VA for diseases caused by exposure to herbicides like Agent Orange. In 2019 Congress passed a law to help Veterans who served in the offshore waters of the Republic of Vietnam, known as Blue Water Veterans, to more easily obtain VA benefits. The VA has hidden its procedures from the public, refusing to fully disclose how it is implementing the law and the basis on which it is denying certain Veterans’ claims.
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