Copyright 2005 Associated Press
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The Associated Press State & Local Wire
November 15, 2005, Tuesday, BC cycle
1:33 AM Eastern Time
SECTION: State and Regional
LENGTH: 580 words
BYLINE: By SUZANNE GAMBOA, Associated Press Writer
DATELINE: WASHINGTON

Despite pledging to spend $15 million a year on Gulf War illness research, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs spent only $400,000 this year on studies of how toxic substances affected the war's soldiers, says an advocate for the veterans.

In addition, no money has been spent on a new center to study treatments for soldiers exposed to oil fires, vaccines, nerve gas and other toxic substances as former VA Secretary Anthony Principi promised last year, said Steve Robinson, executive director of the National Gulf War Resource Center, an advocacy group.

"They are breaking the covenant that they made with soldiers of taking care of them when they come home," Robinson said.

Robinson was to be among witnesses to testify at a hearing planned for Tuesday by Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn. Shay's Government Reform subcommittee wants to know how well Veterans Affairs has done in following a law that regulates research on Gulf War illness. Shays is chairman of a House subcommittee on national security, emerging threats and international relations.

The VA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Thousands of Gulf War veterans have experienced undiagnosed illnesses with symptoms such as chronic fatigue, loss of muscle control, diarrhea, migraines, dizziness, memory problems and loss of balance. For years, the government denied mysterious illnesses were linked to the war.

Texas businessman Ross Perot personally helped fund research at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas on Gulf War illnesses.

In 1998, Congress required VA to create a Gulf War illness research panel, but that did not happen until January 2002.

Last year, with much fanfare, Principi unveiled a report by the panel, the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illness. The panel spent two years reviewing recent Gulf War illness studies and recommended the VA abandon stress studies and focus on toxic substances veterans encountered during the war.

Principi backed the panel's findings by announcing the VA would set aside $15 million a year for Gulf War illness studies and it no longer would pay for studies seeking to show stress as the primary cause of the ailments afflicting veterans of the 1991 Gulf War.

VA's Office of Research reported in September it would spend more than $9 million for Gulf War research and a similar amount in 2006. But Robinson said members of the advisory panel found - after reviewing where money was spent - that only $1.7 million was for new projects and more than $7 million was for projects already in place before 2005.

Most of the $1.7 million was for research on Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. The fatal, neurological disease affects about 100 Gulf War veterans.

Robinson said all new ALS research is being identified as Gulf War research, even though the disease affects more elderly veterans than Gulf War veterans.

"VA again has not delivered," Robinson said in prepared remarks.

Shay's office said the 1998 law requires VA to determine which illnesses may be associated with wartime toxic exposures.

"The purpose of the law is to give sick veterans the benefit of the doubt about whether wartime service caused subsequent illnesses," Shays said.