title: Science versus policy in establishing equitable Agent Orange disability compensation policy.
abstract: This article makes the case that current Agent Orange compensation policy for Vietnam War veterans is based neither wholly upon scientific findings about Agent Orange health effects nor on pure public health policy considerations. Rather, it is the logical culmination of decades of experience among policy makers and public health scientists trying to establish clear-cut, equitable, and scientifically defensible compensation policy in the face of limited relevant science and poor or nonexistent exposure data-all within the broader context of Veterans Affairs disability compensation policies, and a deep-seated commitment to support the men and women who served their country during the Vietnam War. Finally, attempts to update current policy will benefit from an understanding of this background.
authors.affiliation: Office of Public Health and Environmental Agents Service, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC 20012, USA.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Brown
mesh_terms: D015085:2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000075182:Agent Orange; D035881:Compensation and Redress / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D003678:Defoliants, Chemical / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D009307:National Academy of Sciences, U.S.; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012586:Science; D014481:United States; D014729:Veterans Disability Claims / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D047829:Vietnam Conflict
chemical_list: D003678:Defoliants, Chemical; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D015084:2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid; D000075182:Agent Orange; D015085:2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxyacetic Acid