Reassessment of the Department of Veterans Affairs Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry (2022) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
1 Introduction
Pages 11-20
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From page 11... ...
.2 Although burn pits are only one of many possible sources of airborne hazards that may be encountered during deployment to Southwest Asia, they are the most well-recognized and -documented sources of smoke and fumes for a large number of service members. Thus, burn pits are often the focus of veteran and congressional concerns and attention and of deployment-related exposures research.
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From page 12... ...
Based in part on the accumulating scientific evidence regarding the hazards of combustion products, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 (PL 111-84 §317; enacted October 28, 2009) included a provision that prohibited DoD from disposing of waste in open-air burn pits except when alternative disposal methods are not available, and called for the department to issue appropriate regulations concerning them.
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From page 13... ...
The most recent report, Respiratory Health Effects of Airborne Hazards Exposures in the Southwest Asia Theater of Military Operations (NASEM, 2020) , identifies 3 As of March 2016 the Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine continues the consensus studies and convening activities previously undertaken by the Institute of Medicine.
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From page 14... ...
directed the secretary of VA to coordinate with DoD to establish and maintain an open burn pit registry for eligible individuals who may have been exposed to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes from open burn pits, and it specified that the registry should include information to ascertain and monitor health outcomes in exposed service members. The law further instructed VA to develop a public information campaign to inform individuals about the registry -- including how to register and the benefits of registering -- and to periodically notify eligible individuals of significant developments in the study and treatment of conditions associated with exposure to toxic airborne chemicals.
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From page 15... ...
. That committee's analyses included a descriptive characterization of self-reported health outcomes and self-reported exposures to burn pits and other airborne hazards.
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From page 16... ...
• The committee recommends that other means for evaluating the potential health effects associated with airborne hazards and open burn pit exposures be developed, such as a well-designed epidemiologic study. • The committee recommends that VA's messaging be explicit about the limitations on the ability of the AH&OBP Registry to generate valid information that can be used to improve VA health and benefits programs or to inform treatment of individuals potentially exposed to burn pits or other airborne hazards in theater in order to ensure that participants and others do not form unrealistic expectations about the value of participation or the capabilities of the registry.
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From page 17... ...
Senate passed the Health Care for Burn Pit Veterans Act (S.3541) to expand access to health care for post-9/11 combat veterans, including those with exposure to burn pits, and to require that VA implement clinical screenings for veterans to identify potential exposure to toxic substances.
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From page 18... ...
Chapter 3 summarizes the development and operations of the AH&OBP Registry and explores how it has changed since the initial assessment report was published in 2017. In Chapter 4 the committee reviews other sources of airborne hazards exposures data and programs that may be considered for improving the AH&OBP Registry or may be alternatives to it with respect to determining health effects that may result from exposure to burn pits and other airborne hazards.
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From page 19... ...
conducts an independent scientific assessment of the effectiveness of actions taken by the Secretaries of Veterans Affairs and Defense to collect and maintain information in the Air borne Hazards and Open Burn Pit (AH&OBP) Registry on the health effects of exposure to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes caused by open burn pits, 2.
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From page 20... ...
2017. Assessment of the Department of Veterans Affairs Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry.
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