President Biden on Tuesday traveled to Fort Worth, Texas to talk with veterans suffering a host of health issues after being exposed to toxic burn pits while serving in the military.
Mr. Biden said too many veterans came back from combat zones with headaches, dizziness, numbness and cancer.
“We don’t know yet enough the connection between the burn pits and each of these diseases so many of our veterans are now facing, but I’m committed,” he said.
Veteran advocates say Mr. Biden needs to do more than just talk.
Rosie Torres, who founded the group Burn Pits 360 after her husband returned from Iraq with debilitating lung disease, said the president needs to mobilize the Veterans Affairs and Defense departments to support victims of burn pits.
She said her organization has been handling calls from veterans, getting them to doctor’s appointments and setting them up with portable oxygen tanks.
“We, as an organization, are carrying the DOD and VA on our backs,” she said. “We have been the ones mobilizing. It’s shameful that you have a little nonprofit out of Texas doing the job of the government. It shouldn’t be that way. It’s shameful and embarrassing.”
“He has the power to do a lot of things,” Ms. Torres said of the president. “These young men and women are dying and their spouses are being left to fend for themselves. That, in of itself, is an injustice.”
Mr. Biden in recent months has become vocal on the issue of airborne toxins from burn pits. He highlighted the issue in his State of the Union address and in November he ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to explore the link between burn pits and certain medical conditions.
Burn pits were used by the U.S. military in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo to dispose of waste. The pits burned everything from metal, plastics, food waste, medical and human waste, tires and batteries.
Toxins emitted from the burn pits can affect the skin, eyes, respiratory and cardiovascular systems and gastrointestinal tract. Immediate exposure includes eye and throat irritation, coughing, difficulty breathing, skin itching and rashes.
Mr. Biden has suggested that the chemicals from the pits where waste was incinerated in Iraq led to the brain-cancer death of his son Beau in 2015 at 46. The younger Biden, a major in the Delaware Army National Guard unit, served in Iraq and Kosovo.
It is difficult to link toxic exposure to individual medical conditions. Still, the Veteran Affairs’ website says hazardous materials exposure increases risks and dangers for veterans.
Mr. Biden vowed to improve training for Veteran Affairs clinicians and treat exposure-related conditions. He also pledged to launch a network of specialized care and call centers to help answer veterans’ questions about burn pit exposure.
“Folks, these are the kind of steps that can make a difference in getting the proper care for more patients and providing support for veterans,” he said.
Speaking in Texas, Mr. Biden called on Congress to send him a bill that would protect veterans who face health issues after burn pit exposure.
The House last week approved a bill that ramps up spending on health care services and disability payments for veterans who had been exposed to burn pits. All told, it would increase spending on veterans’ health by more than $300 billion.
Mr. Biden vowed that he would sign the bill, which is now headed to the Senate.
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.
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