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VA Secretary Refuses to Add Hypertension, But Agrees to Add AL Amyloidosis to List of Agent Orange Related Diseases

On July 27, 2007, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) Institute of Medicine issued its most recent report on its formal review of the scientific and medical literature on health effects potentially related to exposure to herbicides and related materials used during the Vietnam War, Veterans and Agent Orange: Update 2006.  A VA task force was formed to review the findings of the report and to make recommendations to the Secretary with respect to adding any additional diseases to the list of diseases currently recognized as being associated with herbicide exposure in Vietnam.  Based on the recommendations of the task force, the Secretary announced his decision that the evidence warrants establishment of a presumption of service connection based on service in the Republic of Vietnam for primary AL Amyloidosis.  As required by law, a notice will be published in the Federal Register announcing this addition and 38 CFR 3.309(e) will be amended to include this disease. 

 Additionally, the Secretary has determined there is no evidence at this time to support the establishment of presumption of service connection for any other condition reviewed in the NAS report, including hypertension.  Based on this decision, the stay on processing claims for service connection of hypertension as due to exposure to herbicides during service in the Republic of Vietnam is lifted and pending claims are to be resolved based on the evidence of record.