June 20, 2001

Washington, DC – Congressman Lane Evans of Illinois, the Ranking Democratic Member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and Congressman Vic Snyder a leading advocate for veterans diagnosed with Hepatitis C, commended the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Anthony Principi for promulgating a final regulation for rating liver diseases which recognizes disabilities associated with Hepatitis C.  The prior regulations had not been revised for over 50 years and were issued long before Hepatitis C was recognized as a separate disease entity.  The new rule is effective July 2, 2001.

Veterans who were service-connected for Hepatitis C often had claims rated inappropriately because VA claims personnel had difficulty in reconciling outdated regulations with the symptoms of Hepatitis C and the side effects of treatment, such as incapacitating fatigue.  The new regulations reflect changes in medical diagnosis and treatment.  Earlier this year, Ranking Member Evans and Christopher Smith, Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs had written to Secretary Principi urging promulgation of the new rating schedule that had been issued as a proposed regulation during the Clinton Administration.

Congressmen Evans and Snyder encourage any veteran who has been service-connected for Hepatitis C and who believes that his or her medical condition may result in a higher rating under the new regulations to ask VA to increase their rating.  Since VA currently has a large number of claims awaiting adjudication, it may be some time before the claim can actually be evaluated for a revised rating.  However, it is important for veterans who believe their disease meets the new rating criteria to present their request in a timely fashion.

Hepatitis C is a serious disease that is more prevalent in veterans than in the general population.  Many veterans have had difficulty in establishing service-connection for Hepatitis C, since a test for the disease was not available until 1992.  In order to assist veterans in establishing service-connection for Hepatitis C, Congressman Snyder has urged adoption of a presumption of service-connection for veterans who were exposed to risk factors for Hepatitis C during military service.  A proposed regulation providing for a presumption of service-connection for Hepatitis C was drafted by the Department of Veterans Affairs, but was withdrawn for further review after President Bush assumed office.  Evans and Snyder urge Secretary Principi to publish a proposed regulation providing for presumptive service-connection soon.