news

This evening, Congressman Bob Latta (R-Bowling Green) joined his colleagues in passing H.R. 1381, the bipartisan Burn Pit Registry Enhancement Act, to improve data gathering on burn pit registries by including cause of death after a veteran passes away. The Department of Veteran Affairs’ Airborne Hazards and Burn Pit Registry documents the health concerns of veterans as they relate to the exposure of burn pits while serving overseas, but it currently does not include the known cause of death of veterans who may have been exposed. H.R. 1381 would ensure that family members could have this critical information be included in the registry. Open-air burn pits had been used by the military in Afghanistan and Iraq as early as 2003 to dispose of waste materials.

“We have a duty to take care of the men and women that have served our nation – especially those who were deployed in war zones overseas,” said Latta. “For veterans that served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the effects of those conflicts can extend beyond the battlefield. It’s critical that we have a full understanding of the effect that burn pits have on troops who were exposed to them. Updating the burn pit registry to have the most accurate and complete data – like a veteran’s cause of death – will help the VA fully recognize the impact and scope of these burn pits and the best course of action for veterans that were deployed near them.”  

###