Claims for Agent Orange Exposure
for Naval or Coast Guard Service
on Inland Waters of Vietnam
For all Navy, Coast Guard, Marine and other personnel attempting to prove your presence "in Vietnam" while on a ship that was operating in the "inland waterways" of the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam War. If you have Agent Orange related disabilities and illness, this material is provided to accompany the material you send to the Regional Office with your disability claim. Additionally, you *must* provide the VA with the name of the Ship you were on, the approximate dates you were on "inland waters", and your approximate location. The more detailed and specific you can be, the better your chance of having your claim confirmed.
There is a packet of materials that you can download and include with the submission of your claim for service-connected disabilities, found at http://www.ussjosephstrauss.org/store/Deck_logs/Agent Orange claim docs.zip
This material has been assembled by Ray Berilla at the USS Joseph Strauss (DDG-16) and contains the following documents in a .ZIP file format. [ If you need a good program to UNZIP files, try Unzip Wizard ]
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A 2003 Ruling, won on appeal, for diabetes mellitus due to herbicide exposure while serving offshore Vietnam
- The full ruling for Case 0725187, dated August, 2007, granting entitlement to service connection for diabetes mellitus, type II, and prostate cancer, both secondary to herbicide exposure. Veteran served on a ship in close proximity of land as to receive enemy fire and the veteran "visited Vietnam by mooring to a wharf attached to land in Da Nang harbor, which is within the boundaries of Vietnam."
- The full ruling for Case 0318847, dated August, 2003, granting (among others), diabetes mellitus and coronary artery disease (CAD) as a result of exposure to herbicides. The veteran served aboard the USS Boston in Vietnam waters between April and September 1967, and on two occasions docked in Vietnam.
- The full ruling for Case 0626698, dated August, 2006, granting service connection for T-cell lymphoma secondary to herbicide exposure. "The veteran never set foot in Vietnam, but the USS Henry W. Tucker was regularly within close proximity to the land mass of the Republic of Vietnam....[The veteran contends he was] docked at Da Nang Harbor during his time aboard and regularly was within 100 yards from the Vietnam shores thus exposing him to herbicide agents."
- The full ruling for Case 0420721, dated July, 2004, granting service connection for diabetes mellitus for service on an inland waterway of Vietnam, having served on an aircraft carrier within the inland waters of Vietnam, specifically in the Da Nang Harbor.
- An excerpt from Case 0420721, of that section giving a precise definition of service on qualifying inland waterways of Vietnam.
- The full ruling for a Case from the Waco, TX Regional Office, dated April, 2003, with service in Vietnam conceded by virtue of having been on a ship docked in Vietnam.
- The full ruling for Case 0327244, dated October, 2003, where the veteran is shown to
have served in the waters off the shore of the Republic of Vietnam and had presence in Da Nang Harbor.
Please retrieve these documents from the USS Joseph Strauss (DDG-16) Web Site at http://www.ussjosephstrauss.org/store/Deck_logs/Agent Orange claim docs.zip if you are filing a compensation claim for Agent Orange related disability for service in the Navy or Coast Guard for service on the Inland Waters of Vietnam. Additionally, you *must* provide the VA with the name of the Ship you were on, the approximate dates you were on "inland waters", and your approximate location. The more detailed and specific you can be, the better your chance of having your claim confirmed.
Read general information on this at the USS Joseph Strauss (DDG-16) Web Site .