Persian Gulf War Veterans and Benefits Available

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A Background on the Persian Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War was an offensive led by U.S. and coalition troops, occurring between August 2, 1990, and April 6, 1991. This conflict was spurred by Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait under the regime of Saddam Hussein in August of 1990. Approximately 697,000 U.S. troops were deployed to the Gulf region during this conflict.

According to VA’s website, two main operations were conducted during the Persian Gulf War: Operation Desert Shield from August 2, 1990, to January 16,1991, and Operation Desert Storm from January 17 to April 6, 1991, when a cease fire was signed. The final United States troops participating in this conflict returned on June 13, 1991.

It is important to note that Post-9/11 veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn are also considered to be Gulf War veterans. VA defines Gulf War veterans as those “who served on active duty in the Southwest Asia theater of operations any time from August 2, 1990, to present.”

The Southwest Asia theater of operations includes:

• Iraq
• Kuwait
• Saudi Arabia
• The neutral zone between Iraq and Saudi Arabia
• Bahrain
• Qatar
• Oman
• The United Arab Emirates
• Gulf of Alden
• Gulf of Oman
• Waters of the Arabian Sea, Red Sea, or Persian Gulf
• Airspace above the aforementioned areas

Persian Gulf War Veterans Statistics

Benefits

According to VA’s Annual Benefits Report for Fiscal Year 2025, over 4,000,000 Gulf War and Post-9/11 era veterans receive VA disability compensation each month for a service-connected condition. These veterans experience a total of over 36.3 million service-connected disabilities among them, averaging 9.07 disabilities per compensation recipient.

Health Care

About 622,000 of the 697,000 troops deployed during the Persian Gulf War of 1990–1991 are eligible for VA health care; about 286,000 (41 percent) of which actually use the VA health care system. PGW veterans often experience similar medical conditions, as shown by the following infographic from VA’s website:

What VA Benefits Are Available for Persian Gulf War Veterans?

Often reported are clusters of medically unexplained chronic symptoms such as fatigue, joint pain, headaches, insomnia, indigestion, dizziness, respiratory disorders, memory impairment, and skin problems. VA refers to these clusters of symptoms as Medically Unexplained Chronic Multi-Symptom Illness (MUCMI). More commonly, these symptoms are referred to as “Gulf War Syndrome.”

Gulf War veterans (pre- and post-9/11) who experience symptoms of Undiagnosed Illnesses and/or MUCMIs such as fibromyalgia, functional gastrointestinal disorders, or chronic fatigue syndrome to a degree of least 10 percent disabling during active duty or prior to December 31, 2021, are presumed to have incurred the condition due to their Gulf War service.

A 2016 epidemiological study by the VA Office of Public Health revealed that almost 44 percent, or 4 in 10, of PGW veterans are estimated to have “Gulf War Syndrome.”

Additionally, Gulf War veterans who develop any of a number of infectious diseases that manifest to a degree of at least 10 percent disabling within one year of service are presumed to have incurred the condition during Gulf War service. These diseases are as follows, according to VA’s website:

• Burcellosis
• Campylobacter jejuni
• Coxiella burnetii (Q fever)
• Malaria* (“if not 10 percent or more within one year of separation, may be 10 percent or more at a time when standard or accepted treatises indicate that the incubation period commenced during qualifying period of service”)
• Mycobacterium tuberculosis* (no time limit)
• Nontyphoid Salmonella
• Shigella
• Visceral leishmaniasis* (no time limit)
• West Nile Virus

Gulf War Registry Health Exam

VA offers Gulf War veterans a free Gulf War Registry Health Exam in order to address possible health problems related to environmental exposure during service.

During these examinations, veterans are provided a health exam and physical, laboratory tests if needed, and asked about previous medical and environmental exposure history. Further evaluations are available to these veterans if new conditions surface. In total, over 181,914 Gulf War Registry Exams have been conducted.

This exam is not an assessment for compensation purposes. Veterans seeking disability compensation for conditions incurred during Gulf War service will likely be required to attend a separate Compensation and Pension (C&P) examination.

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