[19980813]98-373EPW_退伍军人与吸烟相关疾病：国会颁布赔偿限额.pdf

Congressional Research Service The Library of CongressCRS Report for CongressReceived through the CRS Web98-373 EPWUpdated August 13, 1998Veterans and Smoking-Related Illnesses: CongressEnacts Limits to CompensationDennis W. SnookSpecialist in Social LegislationEducation and Public Welfare DivisionSummaryWith enactment of P.L. 105-178 (H.R. 2400), the Transportation Equity Act for the21 Century (TEA-21), Congress limited authority of the Department of VeteransstAffairs (VA) to grant service-connected compensation to veterans who, after theenactment date, claim that their smoking-related illnesses are traceable to tobacco usethat began during their military service. P.L. 105-178s prohibition on most smoking-related VA claims is the resolution of an issue with potentially explosive federal costs.Subsequent technical amendments included in P.L. 105-205, the Internal RevenueService reform legislation, removed the implication that smoking may have beenmisconduct, and made other minor clarifications.The issue surfaced in 1993, when the VA General Counsel determined that underVA law which conditions veterans compensation on disabilities traceable to militaryservice diseases linked to toba