Las Vegas Sun: After decades of ‘invisible burdens,’ Nevada Test Range veterans finally nearing VA benefits

Dave Crete’s four years as an Air Force security police officer at the Nevada Test and Training Range ended decades ago — but their impact never has.

All four of his children were born with “various issues” he links to radiation exposure from his time at the sprawling 4,531-square-mile site northwest of Las Vegas where the military once conducted nuclear tests.

Crete has connected with “hundreds and hundreds” of veterans who share similar stories, keeping a running list of military employees and contractors who have died since working at the nuclear testing range. That list grows every year.

Despite their service, veterans like Crete have had little recourse — the classified nature of their work has largely shut them out of Department of Veterans Affairs benefits and support.

The VA does recognize and provide benefits for veterans who participated in atmospheric nuclear weapons tests conducted primarily in Nevada and the Pacific Ocean between 1945 and 1962, but others are left out.

That may be about to change.

U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., is preparing to reintroduce legislation that would open the door to VA benefits for veterans who were exposed to toxic materials while serving at the training range. The bill comes with a new name as well, one that puts a face to the fight: the Sergeant Dave Crete Fighting for the Overlooked Recognition of Groups Operating in Toxic Test Environments in Nevada (FORGOTTEN) Veterans Act.

“This is such a huge honor … but this isn’t about me; it’s a great honor to serve your country, to serve in the military, because you know that there’s a reason you’re doing something that’s truly bigger than yourself,” Crete said. “The greatest thing that I can do today is to serve those I served with … and to help take care of them and take care of their families. No legislation that these two (lawmakers) pass — and they will pass it — will unwind what happened to me … and the others that served up range; it’ll help us and it’ll help our families, and that’s truly the greatest gift.”

U.S. Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., is pushing the effort forward in the House, where she introduced a companion bill called the Presumption for Radiation or Toxin Exposure Coverage for Troops, or PROTECT Act.

The legislation comes after years of activism from Crete, who created the nonprofit organization the Invisible Enemy, to advocate for the thousands of military personnel who share his experience. They filmed a documentary to raise awareness of veterans’ plight.

The veterans are locked out of receiving benefits from the PACT Act, a 2022 law that expanded health care and disability benefits for millions of veterans exposed to toxic substances such as radiation, burn pits and Agent Orange.

The bill would require the Department of Defense to classify the testing range and other sites recognized by the Department of Energy as locations where contamination occurred. It would additionally identify everyone who served within the range since the first nuclear test there in 1951, establishing a process for service members and veterans to provide proof of their service at the DOE-covered facilities.

The bill would mandate the Department of Defense to share that documentation with the VA — along with any recorded injuries, exposures or illnesses related to a veteran’s service — so that those affected may finally be able to claim and access the benefits they are owed. 

It would not be Rosen’s first push on the issue.

She introduced a similar bill last year and worked on it through the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs, eventually securing a provision of it in the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump on Dec. 18. That provision requires the Department of Defense to document service members’ exposure to radiation and other toxins during service at locations both domestically and overseas.

But Rosen has made clear there is more work to be done — and that time is not on these veterans’ side. The longer lawmakers wait, she stressed, the more veterans will die from a lack of access to medical services.

Lee and Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., have introduced various versions of the bipartisan bill in recent years, seeking to establish a presumption of exposure to radiation and toxins at the test site between 1972 and 2005 — which would ensure medical care for affected veterans.

The urgency of that change was on full display May 12, when Lee pressed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth during a Fiscal Year 2027 Department of Defense budget hearing before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense. She invoked Crete by name, describing his struggle to access VA coverage for his medical complications — among them, a grape-sized tumor that was removed from his neck.

During the hearing, Hegseth committed to having his team draft a review of the issue and respond to Lee with a plan. But as of May 28, Lee said she had heard nothing — not from Hegseth, not from his team — even after sending follow-up letters.

“It’s embarrassing that our country is taking this long to allow veterans who were exposed to toxins at the Nevada Test and Training Range to service-connect their illnesses and access the care they deserve,” Lee said in a statement. “I’m grateful for the tireless partnership of Sen. Rosen and Sgt. Dave Crete as we continue to fight for these veterans and introduce new legislation to finally right this wrong.”