Granting Presumption of Service Connection for PFAS Exposure in Veterans

May 2025
Citation:
55
Issue
3
Author
Carley Bomrad

PFAS exposure is emerging as a disability that veterans want covered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). With claims relating to environmental exposure, it is often difficult to prove the disability is a result of service and not something else. However, there is another way to get service-connected disability coverage as a veteran: presumption of service connection. Part I of this Comment addresses how the military handles service-connected disabilities, specifically presumption of service connection with Agent Orange and, more recently, burn pits and water contamination at Camp Lejeune. Part II addresses the dangers of PFAS and how they often show up in military training settings, exposing servicemembers to higher levels. Part III argues that the VA should offer presumption of service connection for veterans and servicemembers facing the consequences of PFAS exposure by referencing presumption for similar issues. Part IV concludes.

Carley Bomrad is a 2026 J.D. candidate at the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.