[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1838 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1838

 To amend title 38, United States Code, to revise the presumptions of 
  service-connection relating to diseases and disabilities of former 
                           prisoners of war.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 29, 2003

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title 38, United States Code, to revise the presumptions of 
  service-connection relating to diseases and disabilities of former 
                           prisoners of war.

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

SECTION 1. PRESUMPTIONS OF SERVICE-CONNECTION RELATING TO DISEASES AND 
              DISABILITIES OF FORMER PRISONERS OF WAR.

    Subsection (b) of section 1112 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
    ``(b)(1) For the purposes of section 1110 of this title and subject 
to the provisions of section 1113 of this title, in the case of a 
veteran who is a former prisoner of war--
            ``(A) a disease specified in paragraph (2) shall be 
        considered to have been incurred in or aggravated by such 
        service, notwithstanding that there is no record of such 
        disease during the period of service; and
            ``(B) if the veteran was detained or interned as a prisoner 
        of war for not less than thirty days, a disease specified in 
        paragraph (3) which became manifest to a degree of 10 percent 
        or more after active military, naval, or air service shall be 
        considered to have been incurred in or aggravated by such 
        service, notwithstanding that there is no record of such 
        disease during the period of service.
    ``(2) The diseases specified in this paragraph are the following:
            ``(A) Psychosis.
            ``(B) Any of the anxiety states.
            ``(C) Dysthymic disorder (or depressive neurosis).
            ``(D) Organic residuals of frostbite, if the Secretary 
        determines that the veteran was interned in climatic conditions 
        consistent with the occurrence of frostbite.
            ``(E) Post-traumatic osteoarthritis.
    ``(3) The diseases specified in this paragraph are the following:
            ``(A) Avitaminosis.
            ``(B) Beriberi (including beriberi heart disease).
            ``(C) Chronic dysentery.
            ``(D) Helminthiasis.
            ``(E) Malnutrition (including optic atrophy associated with 
        malnutrition).
            ``(F) Pellagra.
            ``(G) Any other nutritional deficiency.
            ``(H) Cirrhosis of the liver.
            ``(I) Peripheral neuropathy except where directly related 
        to infectious causes.
            ``(J) Irritable bowel syndrome.
            ``(K) Peptic ulcer disease.''.
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