The VA announced it will begin processing claims for the chronic disabilities of asthma, rhinitis, and sinusitis, including rhinosinusitis.
Service members whose conditions manifested and diagnosed within 10 years of qualifying service are eligible to have their claims fast-tracked by the VA if they served:
- In the Southwest Asia theater of operations beginning Aug. 2, 1990, to the present (to include Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the neutral zone between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, the Gulf of Aden, the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea and the airspace above these locations), or
- In Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Syria, or Djibouti beginning Sept. 19, 2001, to the present.
- Since 2001, burn pits have also been used in Saudi Arabia, Djibouti, Qatar, and many other locations throughout the region.
The VA will be conducting outreach regarding the expanded eligibility for these conditions and has encouraged all veterans suffering from them to file a claim.
The VA released these rules as an “interim final rule,” which allows for interested stakeholders to offer feedback on the rule but still allows the department to accept and process claims as of the Aug. 5 publication date. Individuals who previously filed a disability claim and were denied service connection for one of these conditions will need to refile with the VA for review.
The decision comes after the VA conducted an internal review process and deemed the evidence sufficient based on their review of the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) report and other evidence.
