The Department of Veterans Affairs recently announced the addition of several cancers presumptive for service connection, helping to lower the burden of proof for Veterans of the Gulf War and Post-9/11 to receive no-cost health care and earned benefits.

The list of presumptive cancers for these Veterans now includes acute and chronic leukemias, multiple myelomas, myelodysplastic syndromes, myelofibrosis, urinary bladder, ureter, and related genitourinary cancers.

By lowering the burden of proof, Veterans are no longer required to prove that their military service caused their condition to receive benefits. The VA will automatically assume a service connection for the condition and provide the necessary benefits and provides access to free health care for that cancer. For effective dates for the various presumptive cancers covered, please review this article. The article also contains definitions of the Gulf War and Post-9/11 Veterans whom are covered by this. 

The expansion was part of comprehensive, yearslong effort led by the VA and the Biden-Harris Administration’s focus to help fulfill the nation’s obligation to our Veterans. For more information, please read this article.