February 21, 2019 Blue Water Navy Veterans On January 29, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit's decision in Procopio v. Wilkie held that the clear intent of 38 U.S.C. S 1116 is that a Veteran who served in the territorial sea of the Republic of Vietnam is entitled to the presumption of exposure to Agent Orange. This class of Veterans is generally known as "blue water" Navy Veterans; but any claim based on the court's expanded definition of exposure, regardless of branch of service, might be included. Claims that might be affected by the Procopio ruling include those based on herbicide exposure for which the only evidence of exposure is service on a vessel within the 12-nautical mile territorial sea of the Republic of Vietnam or other service offshore depending upon VA's evaluation of the court's decision. The decision will require the Veterans Benefits Administration to extend the presumption of service connection where the claimant can establish (1) service in the territorial seas of Vietnam during the time period of January 9, 1962, and ending on May 7, 1975 and (2) that he or she suffers (or suffered, in the case of death claims) from one of the presumptive conditions attributed to Agent Orange exposure VA filed a motion to stay implementation, which suspends final action on claims potentially affected by the Procopio decision, while VA continues to evaluate the court's decision. Should you have any questions, or wish to file a claim, please contact the Becker County Veterans Service Office at 218-846- 7312 Veterans Linkage Line 1-888-LinkVet (546-5838)