President Donald Trump — his administration already closing in on nearly a one billion dollars in payouts — Tuesday night promised swift settlement for remaining American veterans, their families, and civilian employees who were exposed to toxic drinking water at Marine Corps Camp Lejeune in North Carolina between 1953 and 1987.
Trump made the welcome announcement at his North Carolina rally. For many of those suffering from the toxic water the camp continued to provide — while reportedly knowing it was contaminated — the accelerated action would rectify a battle for justice that has languished for decades under previous administrations.
Fox News reported:
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), claimants have received more than $919.7 million since President Donald Trump began his second term in office in January 2025. The administration has paid out about 3,300 people who made claims under the 2022 law. From that year to the beginning of 2025, before Trump retook office, only 459 settlements had been paid, totaling $59.6 million.
Such payments have ranged from $100,000 to $500,000, depending on the illness suffered by claimants, according to the outlet.
“Tonight I’m pleased to announce my administration has delivered $1 billion in cash settlements to these veterans and their families, in addition to 3.1 billion for the VA and ordering the DOJ to settle all remaining legitimate claims as soon as possible,” Trump told the airport rally in Greenville. “We don’t want to give any to the trial lawyers, we want it all to go to the families.”
The claims are due to be paid out under a 2022 law, which guarantees victims who developed cancer or other illnesses from the drinking water on the base are entitled to relief.
South Carolina-based attorney Ed Bell spearheaded the effort to pass the law, titled the “Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act.”
Heath was an Ohio Army National Guard combat medic who deployed and, about ten years later, developed a rare autoimmune disease and lung cancer from toxic burn pit exposure. He is credited as a main reason for getting the law passed that compensates soldiers exposed to dangerous toxins, though he died in 2020 at the age of 39, leaving a wife and young daughter.
Bell has pushed as well. He spent half of his 44-year history as an attorney fighting for justice for the Camp Lejeune victims. He’s the lead counsel on the case.
The Trump administration announced in March it was prioritizing the payouts and accelerating the process.
“A lot of these people have been waiting a long time, and quite frankly, I think a lot of them are relieved,” Bell told Fox News Digital. “A lot of them feel like the government has finally said, ‘we’re sorry,’ by helping with the settlements, so I think it’s very positive.”
Bell acknowledged it is a “laborious process,” with payouts having to be determined by the severity of the claimants’ present and future medical conditions.
Between 1953 and 1987, according to Fox, three of the base’s eight water systems contained contaminated water.
Bell said that even after the government found out the water was contaminated, it continued allowing troops to the use the toxic mix.
“Pregnant women drank the water, leading to the death of their babies,” Fox reported. “The contamination was found to cause four incurable diseases, according to Bell.”
The settlement program by the DOJ and the Department of Navy is designed as an alternative to lengthy litigation and offers quicker payouts to those suffering.
Breitbart contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the author of the New York Times true crime best seller House of Secrets , which documents one of the worst cases of child sex abuse in U.S. history, and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.