VA Disability Benefits

Camp Lejeune water contamination health issues

If you served at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune or Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) New River in North Carolina, you may have had contact with contaminants in the drinking water there. Scientific and medical evidence has shown an association between exposure to these contaminants during military service and development of certain diseases later on. If you have qualifying service at Camp Lejeune and a current diagnosis of one of the conditions listed below, you may be able to get disability benefits.

Am I eligible for disability benefits from VA?

You may be eligible for disability benefits if you meet all of these requirements.

Both of these must be true:

You served at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River for at least 30 cumulative days from August 1953 through December 1987, and
You didn’t receive a dishonorable discharge when you separated from the military

And you must have a diagnosis of one or more of these presumptive conditions:

Adult leukemia
Aplastic anemia and other myelodysplastic syndromes
Bladder cancer
Kidney cancer
Liver cancer
Multiple myeloma
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Parkinson’s disease

Who’s covered?

Veterans
Reservists
Guardsmen

What kind of benefits can I get?

Health care
Compensation (payments)

How do I get these benefits?

You’ll need to file a claim for disability compensation and provide this evidence (supporting documents):

Your military records showing you served at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River for at least 30 days from August 1953 through December 1987 while on active duty, or in the National Guard or Reserves, and
Medical records stating that you have 1 or more of the 8 illnesses on the presumptive conditions list (see above)

You can file a claim in any of these ways:

Note: When you file, be sure to state that you’re applying for one or more of the presumed Camp Lejeune illnesses, and upload evidence (like a doctor’s report or medical test results).

Are Veterans and their family members covered for health care?

Yes. Veterans who served at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River for at least 30 cumulative days from August 1953 through December 1987—and their family members—can get health care benefits. We may pay you back for your out-of-pocket health care costs that were related to any of these 15 conditions:

Bladder cancer
Breast cancer
Esophageal cancer
Female infertility
Hepatic steatosis
Kidney cancer
Leukemia
Lung cancer
Miscarriage
Multiple myeloma
Myelodysplastic syndromes
Neurobehavioral effects
Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
Renal toxicity
Scleroderma

How do I get these benefits as a family member?

You’ll need to file a claim for disability compensation and provide this evidence (supporting documents).

You must provide all of this evidence:

A document proving your relationship to the Veteran who served on active duty for at least 30 days at Camp Lejeune (like a marriage license, birth certificate, or adoption papers), and
A document proving that you lived at Camp Lejeune or MCAS New River for at least 30 days from August 1953 through December 1987 (like utility bills, base housing records, military orders, or tax forms), and
Medical records that show you have one of the 15 conditions listed above (as well as the date the illness was diagnosed and that you’re being treated or have been treated in the past for this illness)

And you’ll need to provide evidence that you paid health care expenses for your claimed condition during one of the time periods listed below.

You must provide evidence of payment during one of these time periods:

Between January 1, 1957, and December 31, 1987 (if you lived on Camp Lejeune during this time period, we’ll reimburse you for care received on or after August 6, 2012, and up to 2 years before the date of your application), or
Between August 1, 1953, and December 31, 1956 (if you lived on Camp Lejeune during this time period, we’ll reimburse you for care received on or after December 16, 2014, and up to 2 years before the date you apply for benefits)

You may want to provide a Camp Lejeune Family Member Program Treating Physician Report (VA Form 10-10068b)

You’ll need to ask your doctor to fill out and sign this form before submitting it to us. We don’t require this form, but it can help give us important information to determine your eligibility for benefits.
Download VA Form 10-10068b (PDF)

File a claim

Fill out the Camp Lejeune Family Member Program Application (VA Form 10-10068).
Download VA Form 10-10068 (PDF)

Fax it to 512-460-5536, or
Mail it to:

Department of Veterans Affairs
Financial Services Center
PO Box 149200
Austin, TX 78714-9200

If you need help with your application, call our Camp Lejeune Family Member program staff at 866-372-1144.

What was in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune?

Two on-base water wells that were shut down in 1985 had these chemicals:

Trichloroethylene (TCE)
Perchloroethylene (PCE)
Benzene
Vinyl chloride
Other compounds

Get more information

Download a fact sheet about Camp Lejeune-related benefits (PDF)
Learn more about Camp Lejeune water contamination
Learn more about the Camp Lejeune Family Member program

Sign up to receive notifications from the Marine Corps with the latest updates on issues related to Camp Lejeune water contamination.
Sign up for Marine Corps notifications

Read about the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry public health studies and other efforts to help Marines and their families affected by Camp Lejeune water contamination.
Read more from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Read a report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. This report offers a summary of research on the historical Camp Lejeune water contamination up to 2009.
Read the National Academies Camp Lejeune report