The Lacuna Project

lacuna (n.) a gap in a record where something should be

Independent research. Not affiliated with any government, agency, or company.

Agency

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Findings that rest on exhibits naming this entity

  • DEF-5.5: The 2011 Institute of Medicine report on open-air burn pits, sponsored by VA, found the data on service members' exposures insufficient to say whether the emissions caused long-term health effects.
  • DEF-5.6: The 2022 PACT Act presumes exposure to burn-pit hazards for veterans who served at listed locations and presumes service connection for listed respiratory diseases and cancers without a service record of the disease.
  • DEF-5.7: VA counted 6,488 veteran suicides in 2024, 44.2 percent of the veterans who died had no VA contact in the year of death or the prior five years, and VA states there is no single comprehensive roster of veterans.

Exhibits naming this entity

  • Exhibit 250 18 August 2021. Costs of War Project (Linda J. Bilmes, Harvard Kennedy School): The Long-Term Costs of United States Care for Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars
  • Exhibit 251 31 October 2011. Institute of Medicine (National Academies): Evidence Inconclusive About Long-Term Health Effects of Exposure to Military Burn Pits (news release for Long-Term Health Consequences of Exposure to Burn Pits in Iraq and Afghanistan)
  • Exhibit 252 10 August 2022. U.S. Congress: Public Law 117-168, Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022
  • Exhibit 253 Page accessed 2026-11-09. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: The PACT Act and your VA benefits
  • Exhibit 255 February 2026. Congressional Budget Office: Baseline Projections: Toxic Exposures Fund
  • Exhibit 256 2026. Office of Management and Budget: Budget of the U.S. Government, Fiscal Year 2027: Department of Veterans Affairs
  • Exhibit 257 September 2026. U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs: 2026 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report
  • Exhibit 1205 28 May 2014. VA Office of Inspector General: Interim Report: Review of Patient Wait Times, Scheduling Practices, and Alleged Patient Deaths at the Phoenix Health Care System (14-02603-178)
  • Exhibit 1206 26 August 2014. VA Office of Inspector General: Review of Alleged Patient Deaths, Patient Wait Times, and Scheduling Practices at the Phoenix VA Health Care System (14-02603-267)