Persian Gulf veterans' illness : hearings before the Subcommittee on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fourth Congress, second session, December 10 an

326 Pages·1997·11 MB·English

by  United States. Congress. House. Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. Subcommittee on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations

PERSIAN GULF VETERANS' ILLNESSES
Y 4. G 74/7.P 43/7
Persian Gulf Veterans' Illnesses. H...
HEARINGS
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES
AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT
REFORM AND OVERSIGHT
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
DECEMBER 10 AND 11, 1996
Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight
mm' i?M bi"rr.-
JUL
3 1997
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
38-025CC WASHINGTON : 1997
ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice
SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402
ISBN 0-16-054219-7

.
\ti PERSIAN GULF VETERANS' ILLNESSES
Y4.G74/7:P 43/7
Persian Gulf Veterans7 Illnesses/ H. .
HEARINGS
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON HUMAN RESOURCES
AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT
REFORM AND OVERSIGHT
HOUSE OP REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
DECEMBER 10 AND 11, 1996
Printed for the use of the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight
$&$M
JUL
3 199?
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
38-025CC WASHINGTON : 1997
ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice
SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402
ISBN 0-16-054219-7
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT REFORM AND OVERSIGHT
WILLIAM F. CLINGER, Jr., Pennsylvania, Chairman
BENJAMIN A. GILMAN, New York CARDISS COLLINS, Illinois
DAN BURTON, Indiana HENRY A. WAXMAN, California
JC.ODNESNTNAINSCEHAASTEMROTR,ELILllAin,oisMaryland TROOBMELRATNET.OSW,ISCEa,liJfro.r,niWaestVirginia
CHRISTOPHER SHAYS, Connecticut MAJOR R. OWENS, New York
STEVEN SCHIFF, New Mexico EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York
ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida JOHN M. SPRATT, Jr., South Carolina
WILLIAM H. ZELIFF, Jr., New Hampshire louise Mcintosh slaughter, New
JOHN M. McHUGH, New York York
STEPHEN HORN, California PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania
JOHN L. MICA, Florida GARYA. CONDIT, California
PETER BLUTE, Massachusetts COLLIN C. PETERSON, Minnesota
THOMAS M. DAVIS, Virginia KAREN L. THURMAN, Florida
DAVID M. MCINTOSH, Indiana CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York
RANDY TATE, Washington THOMAS M. BARRETT, Wisconsin
DICK CHRYSLER, Michigan BARBARA-ROSE COLLINS, Michigan
GIL GUTKNECHT, Minnesota ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of
MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana Columbia
WILLIAM J. MARTINI, New Jersey JAMES P. MORAN, Virginia
JOE SCARBOROUGH, Florida GENE GREEN, Texas
JOHN B. SHADEGG, Arizona CARRIE P. MEEK, Florida
MICHAEL PATRICK FLANAGAN, Illinois CHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania
CHARLES F. BASS, New Hampshire BILL BREWSTER, Oklahoma
STEVEN C. LaTOURETTE, Ohio TIM HOLDEN, Pennsylvania
MARSHALL "MARK" SANFORD, South ELIJAH CUMMINGS, Maryland
Carolina
ROBERT L. EHRLICH, Jr., Maryland BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont
SCOTT L. KLUG, Wisconsin (Independent)
James L. Clarke, StaffDirector
Kevin Sabo, General Counsel
Judith McCoy, ChiefClerk
Bud Myers, Minority StaffDirector
Subcommittee on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations
CHRISTOPHER SHAYS Connecticut, Chairman
MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York
STEVEN SCHIFF, New Mexico TOM LANTOS, California
CONSTANCE A. MORELLA, Maryland BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont (Ind.)
THOMAS M. DAVIS, Virginia THOMAS M. BARRETT, Wisconsin
DICK CHRYSLER, Michigan GENE GREEN, Texas
WILLIAM J. MARTINI, New Jersey CHAKA FATTAH, Pennsylvania
JOE SCARBOROUGH, Florida HENRY A. WAXMAN, California
MARSHALL "MARK" SANFORD, South
Carolina
Ex Officio
WILLIAM F. CLINGER, Jr., Pennsylvania CARDISS COLLINS, Illinois
Lawrence J. Halloran, StaffDirector
Robert Newman, Professional StaffMember
Thomas M. Costa, Clerk
Cheryl Phelps, Minority Professional Staff
(ID
CONTENTS
Page
Hearingheld on:
December 10, 1996 1
December 11, 1996 183
Statementof:
Dyckman, Julia, Persian Gulfwarveteran and registered nurse 189
Eddington, Patrick, formerCIAAnalyst 142
Grass, Gunnery Sergeant George J., chemical/biological instant response
force, U.S. Marine Corps 98
Hebert, Major Randy Lee, U.S. Marine Corps, accompanied by Loyd
Hebertand Kim Hebert 105
Jackson, Charles, Tuskegee, AL, VA Medical Center; and Victor Gordan,
Manchester, NH,VAMedical Center 275
Johnson, MajorMichael F., U.S. Army 41
Larrisey, Robert, Persian Gulfwarveteran 214
Mather, Susan H., M.D., chiefpublic health and environmental hazards
officer, Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Af-
fairs; and Francis Murphy, M.D., director, Environmental Agents Serv-
ice 224
Letters, statements, etc., submitted forthe record by:
Cullinan, Dennis, deputy director, national legislative service, Veterans
ofForeignWars oftheUnited States 38
Dyckman, Julia, PersianGulfwarveteran and registered nurse, prepared
statementof 192
Eddington, Patrick, formerCIAAnalyst, prepared statementof 150
Gordan, Victor, Manchester, NH, VA Medical Center, prepared statement
of 284
Grass, Gunnery Sergeant George J., chemical/biological instant response
force, U.S. Marine Corps, prepared statement of 100
Hebert, MajorRandyLee, U.S. Marine Corps, prepared statementof 109
Jackson, Charles, Tuskegee, AL, VA Medical Center, prepared statement
of 278
Johnson, MajorMichaelF., U.S. Army:
Prepared statementof 74
Report on the Fallout From the Destruction ofIraqi Chemical War-
fare Agent Research, Production, and Storage Faculties into Areas
Occupied by U.S. Military Personnel During the 1991 Persian Gulf
War 43
Mather, Susan H., M.D., chiefpublic health and environmental hazards
officer, Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Af-
fairs, prepared statementof 228
Shays, Hon. Christopher, a Representative in Congress from the State
ofConnecticut:
Questionsposed totheVeteransAffairs 3
Prepared statementof 27
Towns, Hon. Edolphus, a Representative in Congress from the State
ofNewYork, prepared statementsof 35, 187
(III)

—
PERSIAN GULF VETERANS' ILLNESSES
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 1996
House of Representatives,
Subcommittee on Human Resources and
Intergovernmental Relations,
Committee on Government Reform and Oversight,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 1:05 p.m., in room
2154, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Christopher Shays
(chairman ofthe subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Representatives Shays, Morella, Sanders, and Fattah.
Also present: Representative Buyer.
Staff present: Lawrence J. Halloran, staff director and counsel;
Robert Newman, professional staff member; Thomas Costa, clerk;
and Cheryl Phelps, minority professional staff.
Mr. Shays. I would like to call this hearing of the Subcommittee
on Human Resources, of the Committee on Government Reform
and Oversight, to order.
Alarms have been sounding for almost 6 years. Only now are
they being heard. From the start of Operation Desert Shield, when
Iraqi munitions and chemical weapons production facilities were
bombed, and throughout the troop movements in Operation Desert
Storm, coalition forces heard thousands of chemical weapons
alarms.
On numerous occasions technicians, trained to operate sophisti-
cated detection equipment, confirmed the presence of nerve and
blister agents near United States troop positions in Iraq, Kuwait,
and Saudi Arabia. Individual soldiers reported SCUD attacks fol-
lowed by toxic mists and powdery fallout. They reported dead ani-
mals in the desert, and a notable lack of insects or other carrion
scavengers on the carcasses.
After the fighting stopped, United States forces detonated Iraqi
chemical munitions stored in bunkers at Khamisiyah.
To this day, many Gulf war veterans r—eport the symptoms
memory loss, fatigue, muscle and joint pain that can characterize
a neurologic exposure.
Routinely, all these reports have been dismissed, discounted, dis-
credited, or denied. Some were dismissed as false positive readings.
Others were discounted as detections below life-threatening levels.
Still others were discredited as attributable only to operator error.
Based on those denials, commanders sounded the "all clear" for
U.S. troops to proceed, unprotected, against an invisible enemy.
Now we know the "all clear" came too soon. Last March when we
began these hearings, the Pentagon's position on chemical and bio-
(l)
logical weapons in the Persian Gulf war consisted of three noes: no
credible detections; no exposures; and therefore, no provable health
consequences among Gulfwar veterans.
These denials were echoed by the Department ofVeterans Affairs
and reflected in their research and treatment priorities.
Today, two ofthe three pillars ofdenial have crumbled under the
weight of reluctantly disclosed facts. There were credible, verified
detections ofchemical nerve and blister agents. The President's Ad-
visory Committee on Persian GulfVeterans' Illnesses concluded de-
tections of chemical nerve agents by Czech technicians in January
1991, were credible. The Department of Defense investigative team
is examining records from 20 other detections previously dismissed
or discounted. Seven of these detections were acknowledged just
last week.
As a result, the number of U.S. Gulf war veterans presumed to
have been exposed to some level of chemical warfare agents has
climbed from zero to 400 to 1,100 to 5,000 to 15,000 to more than
20,000. In the weeks and months ahead, that number of credible
exposures may go much higher.
This is our fifth hearing on Gulfwar veterans' illnesses. Our pur-
pose in all these hearings is to ensure that Gulf war veterans are
properly diagnosed, effectively treated, and fairly compensated.
Since 1991, one oftheir health concerns has been the role of low-
level exposures to a variety of toxins, including chemical nerve
agents, in causing permanent neurological damage and chronic,
often debilitating, symptoms.
Our purpose today and tomorrow is to ask how evidence ofchem-
ical nerve agent detections, including the firsthand accounts ofGulf
war veterans, is gathered, confirmed, and disseminated.
Even now, more than 5 years after the war, chemical detection
information is a critical piece of medical intelligence for a sick vet-
eran trying to establish a service-connected disability claim or try-
ing to provide his or her doctor with a complete toxic exposure his-
tory.
Sadly, that information has not been forthcoming. Our witnesses
today will describe how evidence of toxic chemical detection in the
Gulf war has been lost, destroyed, misrepresented, perhaps even
suppressed, in an effort to support the premature, now insupport-
able conclusion that coalition forces encountered no chemical war-
fare agents.
For want of that information, vital research into the effects of
low-level chemical exposures has been tragically delayed, and many
Gulf war veterans have gotten sicker. Some have died. Only when
all this information is available will veterans, their families, and
their physicians be able to determine the true role of toxic chemi-
cals in causing the variety of illnesses now called the "Gulf war
syndrome." Only then can we sound the "All Clear."
This committee welcomes our witnesses today. We look forward
to their testimony.
I would like to recognize Mr. Sanders, the active ranking mem-
ber.
[The information referred to follows:]
Attachment
1
ONEHUNDREDPOURTHCONGRESS
Congress of ttje Uniteb States
SJous'eoffcfprfScntatibfs
^^5t"5 COMMITTEEONGOVERNMENTREFORMANDOVERSIGHT
iimmurn 2157RayburnHouseOfficeBuilding
Washington.DC20515-6143
SUBCOMMITTEEONHUMANRESOURCES
ANDINTERGOVERNMENTALRELATIONS
A ChristopherShays,Connecticut
Chairman
RoomB-372RayburnBuilding IA*JO*¥TY-CW)Z2M074
Washington.0.C 20515
Tel:[phone]
Fax:[phone]
October3,1996
TheHonorableJesseBrown
Secretary
DepartmentofVeteransAffairs
810VermontAvenue,N.W.
Washington,D.C. 20420
DearMr.Secretary:
TheSubcommitteeisdeeplyconcernedthatDepartmentofVeteransAffairs(VA)
diagnosis,treatment,researchandcompensationpolicieswithregardtoPersianGulfWar
veteranscontinuetorelyondiscreditedconclusionsbytheDepartmentofDefense(DOD)
concerningexposureofU.S.troopstochemicalweaponsandothertoxins.
AtourSeptember19,1996hearingonGulfWarVeterans'Illnesses,Dr.Frances
Murphy,DirectoroftheVAEnvironmentalHealthService,concededintestimonythattheVA
researchagendathrough1995placedalowpriorityonlow-levelchemicalwarfareagent
exposure"becausemilitaryandintelligencesourceshadstatedthatU.S.troopshadnotbeen
exposedtochemicalagents." WefearmorethanVAresearchhasbeendistortedbyrelianceon
premature,erroneousandmisleadingconclusionsbyDODaboutthepresenceandeffectsof
chemicalweaponsintheGulfWartheater.
AspartofourcontinuingoversightofVAactivitiestoaddresstheseriousillnesses
sufferedbyGulfWarveterans,theSubcommitteerequestsyourpromptresponsetothefollowing
inquiries:
1. WhydidtheVAdiagnosticscreeningprotocolforGulfWarveteransfailto
identifyevenoneveteranexposedtochemicalweaponsagent(s)orothertoxins?
Hon.JesseBrown
October3,1996
Page2
TheDODnowestimatesmorethan 15,000troopswereinthepathofthetoxic
plumegeneratedbythedetonationofIraqichemicalweaponsinthepitareaat
Khamisiyah. Wecanonlyexpectthatnumbertoincrease. Fromaninitialestimateof
400,PentagonestimatesofU.S.troopsprobablyexposedtotoxicnerveorblisteragents
havesteadilyincreased,firstto1,100,then5,000,now15,000. Arecentnewsreport
indicatesthenumbercouldbeashighas 130,000.
VAadherencetotheDOD"noexposures"doctrine,ofteninthefaceof
compellingclinicalevidencetothecontrary,couldbeviewedasDepartment-wide
medicalmalpractice. ManyofthoseexposedhavebeenexaminedbytheGulfWar
HealthRegistryprogram. OthershavesoughttreatmentatVAfacilities. Howisitthat
VAdoctorsappeartohavemisdiagnosedallofthem?
2. PleaseidentifyeachspecificelementoftheVAdiagnosticscreeningprotocolfor
GulfWarveteransdesignedtocaptureevidenceofchemicalexposure.
Recently,bothDr.KennethKizer,UnderSecretaryforHealthAffairs,andDr.
Murphytestifiedthe"VAhasalwaysremainedopentothepossibilitythat[PersianGulf
War]PGWveteranswerepotentiallyexposedtoawidevarietyofhazardousagentswhile
servingintheSouthwestAsiatheaterofoperations,includingchemicalwarfareagents."
YetveteransconsistentlytelltheSubcommitteethatVAofficialsignoreordiscounttheir
recollectionsofbatdefieldexposures.
Asaresult,thevariablerangeofveterans'illnesses,characterizedbyrashes,
headaches,muscleandjointpain,gastrointestinaldysfunctionandimpairedcognition,are
diagnosedasPostTraumaticStressDisorder(PTSD),somatoformdisorderorother
psychologicalconditions. Couldthesesamesymptomsbeassociatedwithexposureto
lowlevelsoftoxicagents?
HastheVAignoredlogical,evenobvious,theoriesoftoxicologicalcausationfor
GulfWarveteransillnessesforfiveyearssimplybecauseDODhadalreadyconcluded,
erroneously,thatU.S.troopshadnotbeenexposed?
3. WhatimmediatechangeswillVAmaketodiagnosis,treatmentand
compensationpoliciesinlightofrecentdisclosuresbyDODregardingexposureof
U.S.troopstochemicalagents?
IntestimonybeforeajointhearingoftheSenateSelectIntelligenceandthe
SenateVeteransAffairsCommittees,Dr.Kizersaid,"Thediagnosisofconditionsrelated
tonervetoxins,whethertheybechemicalwarfareagents,pesticidesorhazardous