Vietnam vet suffering from Agent Orange exposure

After serving an eight-month tour of duty in the Vietnam War, Richie Meyer returned home in 1970 without a scratch. But almost 30 years later, the second vice commander of the Baldwin American Legion Post 246 is fighting an even tougher personal battle: trying to solicit help from veterans organizations to cope with the effects of being exposed to Agent Orange — a chemical herbicide used by the U.S. military in the jungles of Vietnam to destroy plants and trees, which denied the enemy a place to hide.

Meyer, a 62-year-old Oceanside resident, has Type 2 diabetes and is almost completely paralyzed from the waist down. He was forced to amputate a toe recently, and gets around primarily with the use of an electronic wheelchair. Though he considers himself more fortunate than other Vietnam veterans that have been exposed to Agent Orange and have more serious diseases, Meyer said that the topic is much more important than is perceived in the public.

“We’re dying left and right and no one even knows or cares,” Meyer said of the thousands of Vietnam veterans suffering from the many diseases caused from exposure to the chemicals. “When people talk about those 50,000 names on the wall, it’s a small drop in the bucket compared to those dying from Agent Orange. We didn’t get shot with a bullet — but we got hit with something worse.”

The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) cites 15 diseases – ranging from cancer to diabetes to respiratory problems – that it cites as “health problems associated with exposure to Agent Orange.” But there is currently no official test that can be administered to determine Agent Orange exposure.

For Meyer, though, he said he has little doubt that his diabetes stems from being exposed, as he recalls American planes often spraying “stuff” over the Dautieng region where he was stationed from 1969-70. In fact, that area on the Cambodian border – nicknamed the “Iron Triangle” – was one of the most heavily sprayed sections during the war.

“We had guys who were coming home from Vietnam and dying right after they got home,” Meyer said of the countless veterans that were exposed to harmful chemicals during the war. “We were telling the government back then and they said ‘nah, its your imagination.’”

Trouble with the VA

When Meyer finished his tour of duty in 1970, he began having trouble hearing out of his right ear. He put in a claim with the VA to get it checked out, but recalls being turned down immediately. Though he said that the hearing problem is not related to Agent Orange exposure, Meyer considered it the beginning of a long and arduous road with the veterans organization.

In 2000, Meyer started to have numbness in his legs and put in another claim with the VA. This time, he said, he knew it was related to agent orange, but the VA did not immediately diagnose him with anything. Another timely process was his wait for an electromyography, or EMG, to test the electrical activity of his muscles.
But by the time the VA processed Meyer’s claims and diagnosed him with Type 2 diabetes, the numbness in his legs was so severe that doctors were telling him to stay away from hot water and sharp objects because he could unknowingly injure himself. Indeed, Meyer says he could “step on a pin and not feel it.”

After a short time on prescribed insulin shots for the diabetes, Meyer, in the course of researching on his illness, came across a different insulin drug that was considered by some doctors to work better than what he was on at the time. But when he requested switching to that drug – known as Lantos – the VA denied him because the drug was considered too expensive. Meyer did eventually get a prescription for Lantos, which he currently takes, after the VA released a report stating that the drug was better for diabetes patients.

Meyer says the VA always seems to be a step behind him. When he asked for a walker, it took so long for him to get one that he required a wheelchair by the time the walker was approved. Now, he has the wheelchair, but is looking to get a specialized van from the VA that would allow him to ride up a ramp and enter the vehicle, making it easier for him to get around. But VA regulations state that the veteran must either be blind or missing a limb to qualify for the van.

Meyer’s wife, Diane, said she shares her husband’s frustration with the VA, particularly in his recent fight to get the van. She said that even though Meyer is not missing a limb, he still has similar trouble getting around. “He’s got two legs but they don’t work too well,” Diane said.

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