[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2996 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2996

To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the period of time in 
which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs presumes the service-connection 
of certain disabilities of veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War, 
 Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New 
                     Dawn, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 21, 2011

   Mr. Kissell (for himself and Mr. Roe of Tennessee) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to extend the period of time in 
which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs presumes the service-connection 
of certain disabilities of veterans who served in the Persian Gulf War, 
 Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New 
                     Dawn, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Gulf War Syndrome `Presumptive 
Illness' Extension Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. PRESUMPTIVE PERIOD FOR CERTAIN DISABILITIES OCCURRING IN 
              VETERANS WHO SERVED IN THE PERSIAN GULF WAR, OPERATION 
              ENDURING FREEDOM, OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM, OR OPERATION 
              NEW DAWN.

    (a) Extension of Period.--Subsection (b) of section 1117 of title 
38, United States Code, is amended by striking ``section.'' and 
inserting ``section, but in no event may the end of such period of time 
be earlier than December 31, 2018.''.
    (b) Clarification of Veterans Covered.--
            (1) Compensation.--Such section is further amended by 
        adding at the end the following:
    ``(i)(1) For purposes of this section, the Secretary shall treat a 
veteran described in paragraph (2) as a veteran who served on active 
duty in the Armed Forces in the Southwest Asia theater of operations 
during the Persian Gulf War.
    ``(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a veteran who served 
on active duty in the Armed Forces during Operation Enduring Freedom, 
Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New Dawn in the Southwest Asia 
theater of operations, Afghanistan, or other location that supported 
such an operation, as determined by the Secretary.''.
            (2) Presumption.--Section 1118 of such title is amended by 
        adding at the end the following:
    ``(e)(1) For purposes of this section, the Secretary shall treat a 
veteran described in paragraph (2) as a veteran who served on active 
duty in the Armed Forces in the Southwest Asia theater of operations 
during the Persian Gulf War.
    ``(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a veteran who served 
on active duty in the Armed Forces during Operation Enduring Freedom, 
Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New Dawn in the Southwest Asia 
theater of operations, Afghanistan, or other location that supported 
such an operation, as determined by the Secretary.''.
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