Stars and Strips - 11/16/98- 12/3/98 Issue
(Stars and Stripes)--Congress Nov. 16 was urged to fund new research into the health effects of dioxin on civilians and military in Vietnam, according to a statement released by the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA).
Dioxin was the toxic ingredient in the defoliant Agent Orange, which was used widely during the Vietnam War.
Making the request were, in addition to VVA National President George C. Duggins, Adm. Elmo R. Zumwalt Jr. (USN-ret.); Rep. Lane Evans, D-Ill., ranking minority member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and Dr. Arnold Schecter, a professor of preventive medicine with the American Public Health Association (APHA) and others.
Duggins Nov. 6 called for congressional hearings on the Pentagon's $200 million "Operation Ranch Hand" study of the health effects of Agent Orange on Vietnam War veterans. The American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans and other groups have condemned the study as having been altered and mischaraterized by the Pentagon.
The Defense Department also has been charged with hiding scientific studies of Agent Orange that might link exposure to it with cancer and birth defects.
"Independent research must start immediately so that we might understand what Agent Orange and other toxins have done to people and the environment,' Duggins said.
'This is no longer just a study of the effects of war on veterans. We now know that the children of veterans, as well as all civilians who have been exposed to dioxin, are susceptible to as many as 28 or more different diseases. The environment where Agent Orange was sprayed must be studied so we might learn the full effects of dioxin to minimize and prevent future health damage to everyone.'
The officials, who gathered at an APHA press conference, said "a fair and reliable study by an independent body" needs to be funded by Congress and "launched now while those people and affected lands can scientifically reveal the extent of the damage," Duggins said.
'We are running out of time, since the half-life of dioxin is seven and a half years," said VVA Government Relations Director Rick Weidman.
'We need federally funded independent research of health effects in Vietnam before it is too late. We need an independent research agency in whom all can have confidence to assume control of the Ranch Hand Study and other studies.
"Most importantly, we need a congressional investigation...to explore" reports of "distortion and manipulation of the data in the Ranch Hand study. A full GAO [Government Accounting Office] report and hearings into the matter appears to be warranted."
'It has been almost 30 years since the spraying was stopped in Vietnam and almost 20 years since the Ranch Hand study was started,' said Jack McManus, VVA national treasurer and a participant in the study.
McManus said, 'It was most enraging to find out the Air Force study results were flawed and now research has to be started all over again.'
"Operation Ranch Hand"--the code name for Agent Orange- spraying missions in Vietnam--began in 1979. It tracked the health status of some 1,000 veterans who took part in the spraying missions, comparing them with a control group not involved.
McManus was involved in the spraying operations and exposed to "very high levels of dioxin," the VVA said.
# # #
.