The fact that medical professionals seldom ask women whether they served in the military upon assigning them a diagnosis is just one of the reasons why many female veterans fail to receive the healthcare they need. Across the United States, there are between 450 and 500 military bases, out of which at least 385 are heavily contaminated with PFAS, a group of toxic chemicals. The source of PFAS on military bases is the use of aqueous film-forming foam – AFFF for short – by firefighters and trainees.
