U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) has cosponsored two bills that help veterans who have illnesses related to being exposed to Agent Orange while serving during the Vietnam War.
“It is often forgotten that many of our Vietnam-era veterans are still quietly suffering due to their exposure to toxic chemicals,” Rep. Stefanik said on April 22. “They fought for their country valiantly, and now Congress has a responsibility to fight for their health and protection under the law.”
Rep. Stefanik is an original cosponsor of the Keeping Our Promises Act, H.R. 2200, which was introduced by U.S. Reps. Bruce Westerman (R-AR) and Joe Cunningham (D-SC) on April 10. The bill would amend the Agent Orange Act of 1991 to expand the list of medical conditions recognized by the National Academy of Sciences that are presumed to be connected to veterans’ exposure to toxic chemicals while they served in Vietnam.
The congresswoman also cosponsored H.R. 1713, the Lonnie Kilpatrick Pacific Relief Act, a bill that was sponsored last month by U.S. Rep. Michael San Nicolas, a Democrat representing Guam. Under the legislation, the list of territories where veterans served who could have been exposed to Agent Orange would be expanded to include Guam, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands. The Agent Orange Act of 1991 would also be amended to cover veterans from those U.S. territories, Rep. Stefanik’s office explained.
“I am a consistent supporter of veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange during their service,” said the congresswoman, who added that she was proud to cosponsor both “life-saving pieces of legislation.”