Did you serve on active duty at the U.S. Marine Corps Base at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, from January 1, 1957 through December 31, 1987? You may have been exposed to drinking water contaminated with industrial solvents, benzene, and other chemicals.
The Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012 provided VA authority to treat Veterans who served at Camp Lejeune for not less than 30 days during the covered period. These Veterans are eligible for enrollment in Priority Group 6 or higher and cost-free care VA health care for any of the following illnesses or conditions:
• Bladder cancer
• Miscarriage
• Breast cancer
• Multiple myeloma
• Esophageal cancer
• Myelodysplastic syndromes
• Female infertility
• Neurobehavioral effects
• Hepatic steatosis
• Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Kidney cancer
• Renal toxicity
• Leukemia
• Scleroderma
• Lung Cancer
Veterans already enrolled in VA health care can contact their local VA medical facility to receive care under the new law. Veterans who are not enrolled should apply for VA health care benefits by completing a VA Form 10-10EZ. The application can be submitted online, by calling toll-free 1-877-222-VETS (8387) or in person at their local VA medical care facility. To find the location of the nearest VA medical facility, use the facility locator.
Certain Family members who resided at Camp Lejeune will be eligible for health care once Congress appropriates funds to VA and final regulations are published. Family members can call 1-877-222-VETS (8387) to obtain more information.
The VA Office of Public Health website provides information about Camp Lejeune water contamination here.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) provides information on its website. The US Marine Corps also maintains information here and encourages all who lived or worked at Camp Lejeune before 1987 to register to receive notifications.
Terry J. Walters is the Co-Chair of the VA Camp Lejeune Task Force and Deputy Chief Consultant of Post Deployment Health in the Office of Public Health at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
I lived and worked on New River Air station From 1978 to 1981. I also had friends who lived in Tarawa terrace, and visited them often. Would ether one of these qualify me for benefits?
I lived and worked in the French Creek area from 1978 to 1980 before going PCS to Okinawa Japan for a year…would this qualify me?
I attended my mos schooling there in 1972 and suffer from a neurologic disorder.
I believe their is a connection. After mos school I went overseas where I believe I came in
contact with agent orange as well. But, how do I prove this.
I was there for about a week in 1975, not long enough to have problems but I do have unexplained gastrointestinal problems. Just wondering if they could be related, drank a lot of water while there. I am not worried about the benefits as I am 100 % service connected anyway but this might help to determine a cause and find a solution to my problems.
My daughter, a Lance Corporal in the Marines, died of breast cancer in 1994. She attended boot camp at Camp Lejeune in 1987. She was also stationed at Lejeune until she deployed for Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm. Too late for the VA to do anything to help now, but is there any sort of survivor benefit for her mother or father ?