[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2697 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2697

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of 
   service connection for purposes of veterans benefits for certain 
 chronic symptoms occurring in veterans who served in the Persian Gulf 
                                  War.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 4, 1999

 Mr. Manzullo introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of 
   service connection for purposes of veterans benefits for certain 
 chronic symptoms occurring in veterans who served in the Persian Gulf 
                                  War.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Persian Gulf War Syndrome 
Compensation Act of 1999''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Since the end of the Persian Gulf War, the Federal 
        Government has funded 121 research projects to examine the 
        illness known as the Persian Gulf War Syndrome.
            (2) The results of those studies clearly indicate the 
        existence of the syndrome, leading to disability and sometimes 
        death.
            (3) Although the specific cause of the syndrome has not 
        been definitely diagnosed, the need to compensate those 
        veterans suffering from this illness is clear because the 
        connection between military service in the Persian Gulf War 
        theater and the syndrome has been clearly established.

SEC. 3. COMPENSATION OF VETERANS WITH PERSIAN GULF WAR SYNDROME.

    (a) Compensation.--(1) Chapter 11 of title 38, United States Code, 
is amended by inserting after section 1117 the following new section:
``Sec. 1117A. Presumption of service connection for Persian Gulf War 
              Syndrome
    ``(a)(1) For the purposes of section 1110 of this title, and 
subject to section 1113 of this title, a specified chronic symptom from 
which a covered Persian Gulf veteran with Persian Gulf War Syndrome is 
suffering shall be considered to be a disease or disability incurred in 
or aggravated by service in the active military, naval, or air service, 
notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such chronic 
symptom during the period of such service.
    ``(b) For purposes of this section:
            ``(1) The term `covered Persian Gulf War veteran' means a 
        Persian Gulf veteran (as defined in section 1117(f) of this 
        title) any part of whose service on active duty in the Armed 
        Forces in the Southwest Asia theater of operations was during 
        the period beginning on August 2, 1990, and ending on December 
        31, 1991.
            ``(2) The term `Persian Gulf War Syndrome' means a set of 
        two or more specified chronic symptoms becoming manifest in a 
        covered Persian Gulf War veteran before January 1, 1995, 
        regardless of whether the cause of any such symptom is 
        diagnosed.
            ``(3) The term `specified chronic symptom' means the 
        frequent occurrence of any of the following:
                    ``(A) Joint pain.
                    ``(B) Muscle pain.
                    ``(C) Fatigue.
                    ``(D) Severe headache.
                    ``(E) Memory loss.
                    ``(F) Respiratory disorder.
                    ``(G) Sleep disturbances.
                    ``(H) Skin rash.
                    ``(I) Circulatory disorder.''.
    (2) The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1117 the 
following new item:

``1117A. Presumption of service connection for Persian Gulf War 
                            Syndrome.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1113 of such title is amended by 
inserting ``1117A,'' before ``or 1118'' each place it appears.
    (c) Effective Date.--Section 1117A of title 38, United States Code, 
as added by subsection (a), shall apply with respect to claims 
submitted before, on, or after the date of the enactment of this Act 
and regardless of whether the claimant is alive or deceased.
                                 <all>