Army Asbestos Exposure & Mesothelioma Risks

Like many of the other branches of the military, the army has a high risk of exposure to asbestos. In fact, veterans make up 30 percent of the mesothelioma cases in this industry. In the past, this substance was installed in a variety of structures within this branch that led to some people later developing an illness from it. The problem comes from how it takes anywhere from 20 years up to 50 years for it to materialize.

Compensation and Filing a Claim

Those who served in the military and later developed mesothelioma because of it from exposure will be considered 100 percent disabled. They will be granted the maximum amount in monthly disability compensation. In addition, let’s say that you have a service member who later died as a result of exposure. You could receive dependency and indemnity compensation.

As a veteran of the military, you also have the option to sue some of the private companies who supplied the products over to the military. This won’t hinder your compensation, and some families have used it as a way of recovering cash from caregiving expenses, lost income and other costs. You need to have an experienced lawyer who can represent you in your case. You want someone who has a thorough understanding of how this field of law works.

How are Veterans Treated?

Because of a high cost of care among veterans, the healthcare system has partnered with some of the best doctors within the United States. You have access to better care than ever before through the VA. You have a few different facilities where you will receive top-notch treatment for this disease that include:

  • Los Angeles
  • Miami
  • Boston
  • Houston

While the military stopped with the use of this harmful substance during the later 1970s, they kept them in their buildings, and this has led to some issues. This disease can take decades before it fully develops. As a result, many service members don’t develop this disease until they have retired much later.

Most of the time, the diagnosis doesn’t come until much later, and another problem comes from the rarity of this disease. Because of its rareness, doctors misdiagnose it, which leads to it being too late before they can do anything about it.

You have many risks of exposure with this that you should be aware of. After 1998, they stopped with the use of these asbestos products to service members from it. Through this program, full compliance must be made with local, state and federal laws for safety. They have set many requirements to ensure that people stay safe with it.

In developing nations, exposure remains a risk because the army still makes widespread use out of it, which can lead to cancer. If you receive a diagnosis for this disease, you should begin the process of VA compensation as soon as possible because the process can be lengthy. You want to get this out of the way as quickly as possible.