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PAG LIN
1 1 SENATE RESOLUTION NO. ___
1 2 BY BARTZ
1 3 A Senate Resolution recognizing Sergeant Scott Harlan
1 4 Siefken and his family and requesting federal
1 5 assistance.
1 6 WHEREAS, the honorable Sergeant Scott Harlan
1 7 Siefken served his country for over seven years in
1 8 both the United States Navy and in the Iowa Army
1 9 National Guard; and
1 10 WHEREAS, Sergeant Siefken's duties included active
1 11 duty in Operation Desert Storm from September 27,
1 12 1990, until April 13, 1991, as a member of the 1133rd
1 13 Transportation Company of the Iowa Army National
1 14 Guard; and
1 15 WHEREAS, Sergeant Siefken was among over 700,000
1 16 service personnel who served in the Persian Gulf
1 17 during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm; and
1 18 WHEREAS, as of March 1996, approximately 80,000
1 19 veterans had officially registered with the federal
1 20 Department of Veterans Affairs or with the federal
1 21 Department of Defense as having developed a chronic
1 22 illness subsequent to the war and an unknown number of
1 23 additional veterans have sought private medical care;
1 24 and
1 25 WHEREAS, these veterans report a core set of
1 26 symptoms including sleep problems, mood swings, short-
1 27 term memory loss, chronic fatigue, rashes or skin
1 28 problems, muscle and joint pain, headaches, nerve
1 29 problems, respiratory problems, abdominal pain,
1 30 cardiovascular problems, sensitivity to bright light,
2 1 blurred vision, diarrhea, and additional symptoms; and
2 2 WHEREAS, based upon the symptoms reported, health
2 3 care officials are unable to easily diagnose a
2 4 distinct illness although the symptoms are often
2 5 collectively referred to as gulf war syndrome; and
2 6 WHEREAS, due to the nature of the symptoms and the
2 7 lack of a comprehensive definition of gulf war
2 8 syndrome, affected veterans have been diagnosed with a
2 9 variety of illnesses found in the general population;
2 10 and
2 11 WHEREAS, following an initial diagnosis of a
2 12 medical problem found in the general population, a
2 13 veteran may not subsequently be considered to be
2 14 suffering from a service-related illness or with an
2 15 undiagnosable condition such as gulf war syndrome; and
2 16 WHEREAS, the federal government's approach to
2 17 compensation of veterans of the Persian Gulf War for
2 18 medical problems is to provide compensation for
2 19 service-related illness or undiagnosable conditions;
2 20 and
2 21 WHEREAS, Sergeant Siefken was diagnosed with
2 22 medical problems existing in the general population
2 23 thus masking any determination of an undiagnosable
2 24 illness such as gulf war syndrome and rendering him
2 25 ineligible for compensation for an undiagnosible
2 26 illness; and
2 27 WHEREAS, Sergeant Siefken died in October 1994
2 28 following a long and painful illness as the result of
2 29 symptoms which are characteristic of gulf war
2 30 syndrome; and
3 1 WHEREAS, Sergeant Siefken's wife, Lydia, and two
3 2 children have been denied disability and survivor's
3 3 compensation despite repeated efforts to receive such
3 4 compensation; and
3 5 WHEREAS, the federal government has made little
3 6 progress in educating, diagnosing, treating, or
3 7 compensating the veterans of the Persian Gulf War
3 8 suffering from medical problems; NOW THEREFORE,
3 9 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, That the state of
3 10 Iowa recognizes the great sacrifices of veterans of
3 11 the Persian Gulf War and commends Sergeant Siefken and
3 12 his fellow veterans on their selfless service to their
3 13 country; and
3 14 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the United States
3 15 Congress and the President of the United States are
3 16 requested to accelerate efforts in defining gulf war
3 17 syndrome and in educating, diagnosing, treating, and
3 18 compensating affected veterans of the Persian Gulf War
3 19 and their families.
3 20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the United States
3 21 Department of Veterans Affairs is requested to review
3 22 the Siefken family's request for compensation as a
3 23 request for compensation based upon an undiagnosable
3 24 illness.
3 25 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this
3 26 Resolution be sent to the President of the United
3 27 States, to the Iowa congressional delegation, to the
3 28 United States Department of Veterans Affairs, and to
3 29 Mrs. Lydia Siefken and her children, in recognition of
3 30 Sergeant Siefken's service to his state and country
4 1 and of the great sacrifice made by the Seifken family.
4 2 LSB 2354SS 77
4 3 pf/jj/8.1
Text: SR00007 Text: SR00009 Text: SR00000 - SR00099 Text: SR Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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