CAMP LEJEUNE: Close to 9,000,000 service members were potentially exposed to harmful water

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs reported that from 1953 to 1985, the water systems that supplied drinking water to two housing areas at Camp Lejeune were contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs). During this period, close to 9,000,000 service personnel and their families were potentially exposed to this harmful water, making Camp Lejeune one of the worst cases of water contamination in U.S. history. The VOCs found in the drinking water were traced to two of the eight water treatment plants on the base.

Camp Lejeune justice act 2022

Legislation was enacted, which created a two-year period for military members and their families to file claims based on exposures to chemicals at the military base between 1953 and 1987. The process is open to Marines who served on the base, their family members, and contractors who worked in Camp Lejeune.

The claims must first be filed with the Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG) in Norfolk, Virginia. After receiving a decision from the JAG unit, veterans or their family members can choose to file a lawsuit in the Eastern District of North Carolina.

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry estimates that as many as 1 million people may have been exposed to the drinking-water contamination.¹

Latest news on camp lejeune water contamination 2022

October 2022 Update: The U.S. Navy JAG Office reported that than 5,000 claims were filed in the first few weeks of October 2022. In addition, a U.S. Government Accountability Office (U.S. GAO) report revealed that thousands of veterans’ disability claims linked to the Camp Lejeune water contamination had been prematurely or wrongly denied before the Act was passed into law.

September 2022 Update: The first Camp Lejeune water lawsuits have been filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina, where all complaints must be filed, after proper notice has been provided to the U.S. Navy JAG Office of intent to pursue a claim. Over the coming weeks and months, the Court is preparing for thousands more lawsuits to be filed.

Who is Eligible to file a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit?

Any individual who suffered an injury caused by contaminated water at Camp Lejeune, after living or working on the base for at least 30 days between August 1, 1953 and December 31, 1987, including:

• U.S. military service personnel
• Military service family members who resided on the base
• Unborn children exposed in utero
• Civilian contractors who worked at Camp Lejeune

Advertising expenses from law firms and marketing agencies

According to the research firm X Ante, in the last six months, law firms and marketing agencies spent $45 million on Camp Lejeune claims. This represents nearly double what has been spent on advertising over claims against 3M over its Combat Arms earplugs—currently known as the largest mass litigation in history with nearly 315,000 lawsuits filed.²

Legal Help Advisor is investigating cases where individuals were exposed to contaminated drinking-water supply wells at Camp Lejeune and have been diagnosed with cancer.

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Sources 1. Reuters (September 12, 2022). Camp Lejeune water contamination claims total about 5,000 so far, U.S. Navy says. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/camp-lejeune-water-contamination-claims-total-about-5000-so-far-us-navy-says-2022-09-12/ 2. Reuters (October 4, 2022). Camp Lejeune legislation spurs $45 million ad blitz. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/camp-lejeune-legislation-spurs-45-mln-ad-blitz-2022-10-04/ 3. Judge Advocate General’s Corps U.S. Navy (N.D). Retrieved from https://www.jag.navy.mil/ Other Sources ●     Maslia, Morris L., Summary of Water-Modeling ActivitiesPresentation (Camp Lejeune), Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Regi. April 29,2009 Draft. Marine corps base camp lejeune https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/lejeune/panel_report_groundwater.html ●     Miyakawa M, Tachibana M, Miyakawa A, Yoshida K, Shimada N, Murai M, Kondo T. Re-evaluation of the latent period of bladder cancer in dyestuff-plant workers in japan. Int J Urol. 2001 Aug;8 (8): 423-30. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11555006/ ●     Nadler, D., Zurbenko, I., Estimated Cancer Latency Times Using a Weibull Model. Advances in Epidemiology, August 2017. Volume 2014,8 pages. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8219898/ ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR TETRACHLOROETHYLENE. June 2019 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp18-p.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR TRICHLOROETHYLENE. June 2019 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp19.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR 1,2- DICHLOROETHENE. January 2022 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp87.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR VINYL CHLORIDE, July 2006 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp20.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. ATSD Assessment of the Evidence for the Drinking Water Contaminants at Camp Lejeune and Specific Cancers and Other Diseases. January 2017. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/lejeune/docs/atsdr_summary_of_the_evidence_for_causality_tce_pce_508.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. Analyses and Historical Reconstruction of Groundwater Flow, Contaminant Fate and Transport, and Distribution of Drinking Water Within the Service Areas of the Hadnot Point and Holcomb Boulevard Water Treatment Plants and Vicinities, U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, Chapter A: Summary and Findings. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Atlanta, Georgia. March 2013 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/lejeune/hadnotpoint.html ●     U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR BENZENE. August 2005 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp3.pdf   ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR TOLUENE. June 2017 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp56.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR ETHYLBENZENE. November 2010. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ToxProfiles/tp110.pdf ●     U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Services, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR XYLENE. August 2007 https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp71.pdf