Veterans sick from radiation say their benefits are being denied

LAS VEGAS (WAND) – Men and women who served in classified missions for the Air Force and the Department of Defense are being denied health and other benefits because their records list their place of service as Data Masked.

“I have brain atrophy which my doctor at the VA believes would be the result of radiation exposure,” Dave Crete of the not-for-profit The Invisible Enemy told WAND News. “The issue that we have is the VA denies I was anywhere that would have happened.”

Crete and others, including some from Illinois, believe their illnesses and cancers are connected to their service at a facility near Tonopah in Nevada. The location is part of the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR). The classified work they performed in the 1980s and 1990s is where hundreds of nuclear weapons were tested from the 1950s through 1992 in the Nevada desert.

“In the 70s I used to sling hot dogs and sodas at the football games,” said Robert Krouse who grew up in Champaign, Illinois and worked as a vendor at Memorial Stadium at the University of Illinois.

Wearing an Illinois hat Krouse told of his numerous illnesses, including cancers, and his inability to get VA coverage. He now only has one vocal cord left, his teeth have been removed and much of his tongue. Krouse takes in all of his food and medications through a tube.

“Due to the radiation I cannot swallow,” Krouse stated.

Legislation introduced in the fall is pending in Congress which would allow the VA to provide benefits even though their service is still classified.

It’s believed more than 660 people have died as a result of their service at the Nevada site.

“I worry about it every day, you know, when does my turn come,” said Richard Johnston, Johnston has had numerous lumps removed and currently has colon cancer with the right half of his colon removed.

Crete has been raising money for his organization to pay for the fight to get legislation approved. He says the average age of people dying from their service connected to the location is about 65.