SPEAKER INDEX CONTENTS INSERTS BACKHUS 12 27 32 33 35 36 37 BILIRAKIS 5 33 34 35 36 BROWN 10 CARSON 10 11 CLAUW 19 29 34 DOYLE 37 45 47 48 EDGERTON 64 66 ENGEL 24 30 32 33 34 FEUSSNER 46 49 FORD 57 61 62 64 GUTIERREZ 3 30 32 33 HINTON 27 28 29 35 36 HUTCHINSON 7 KENNEDY 7 8 KIPEN 14 18 30 KIZER 38 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 MASCARA 10 MORAN 7 MURPHY 43 MYERS 53 60 64 66 PETERSON 9 PUGLISI 50 63 65 STEARNS 1 5 7 8 9 10 11 14 18 19 24 27 28 29 30 33 37 38 42 43 44 45 48 49 50 52 53 54 57 60 61 62 64 66 VIOLANTE 55 62 65 CONTENTS SPEAKERS INSERTS OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRMAN STEARNS PAGE 1 OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. LUIS V. GUTIERREZ PAGE 3 OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. MICHAEL BILIRAKIS PAGE 5 OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOSEPH P. KENNEDY II PAGE 7 OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. COLLIN C. PETERSON PAGE 9 OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. CORRINE BROWN PAGE 10 STATEMENTS OF STEPHEN P. BACKHUS, DIRECTOR, VETERANS' AFFAIRS AND MILITARY HEALTH CARE ISSUES, U.S. GENERAL ACCOUNTING OFFICE, ACCOMPANIED BY HENRY HINTON, ASSISTANT COMPTROLLER GENERAL, NATIONAL SECURITY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS DIVISION; HOWARD KIPEN, M.D., M.P.H., INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE, DIRECTOR AND ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH DIVISION, ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON MEDICAL SCHOOL; DANIEL J. CLAUW, M.D., ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR OF MEDICINE, CHIEF OF RHEUMATOLOGY, IMMUNOLOGY, AND ALLERGY, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER; AND MAJ. CHARLES C. ENGEL, JR., M.D., M.P.H., CHIEF, GULF WAR HEALTH CENTER, WALTER REED ARMY MEDICAL CENTER PAGE 11 STATEMENT OF STEPHEN P. BACKHUS PAGE 12 STATEMENT OF HOWARD KIPEN, M.D., M.P.H. PAGE 14 STATEMENT OF DANIEL J. CLAUW, M.D. PAGE 19 STATEMENT OF MAJ. CHARLES C. ENGEL, JR., M.D., M.P.H. PAGE 24 STATEMENT OF KENNETH KIZER, M.D., M.P.H., UNDER SECRETARY FOR HEALTH, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS, ACCOMPANIED BY: FRAN MURPHY, M.D., M.P.H., DIRECTOR, ENVIRONMENTAL AGENTS SERVICE; AND JOHN R. FEUSSNER, M.D., CHIEF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OFFICER PAGE 38 STATEMENTS OF MATTHEW PUGLISI, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR GULF WAR VETERANS, NATIONAL VETERANS AFFAIRS AND REHABILITATION COMMISSION, THE AMERICAN LEGION; SARAH V. MYERS, Ph.D, RNC, VICE PRESIDENT AND LEGISLATIVE CHAIRMAN, NURSES ORGANIZATION OF VETERANS AFFAIRS; JOSEPH A. VIOLANTE, DEPUTY NATIONAL LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR, DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS; AND JEFFREY S. FORD, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL GULF WAR RESOURCE CENTER PAGE 50 STATEMENT OF MATTHEW PUGLISI PAGE 50 STATEMENT OF SARAH V. MYERS, Ph.D., RNC PAGE 53 STATEMENT OF JOSEPH A. VIOLANTE PAGE 55 STATEMENT OF JEFFREY S. FORD PAGE 57 INSERTS SPEAKERS CONTENTS NO INSERTS IN THIS HEARING