MILITARY AFFF EXPOSURE LAWSUITS

LK Investigating AFFF Exposure Claims from Service Members and Veterans

Military service members were exposed to toxic PFAS chemicals in firefighting foam used at more than 700 military installations since the 1970s. 

Levy Konigsberg is investigating aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) exposure claims from veterans and military firefighters diagnosed with serious health conditions.

The Department of Defense began using AFFF in the 1970s to fight fuel fires. The two most prevalent PFAS chemicals in AFFF are perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). The release of these chemicals during training exercises and emergency responses became a major source of groundwater contamination on military bases. According to Department of Defense data, more than 700 U.S. military sites are known or likely to have discharged PFAS, exposing service members, military firefighters, and their families through direct contact with the foam and through contaminated drinking water. Military firefighters trained and worked with AFFF for decades without being told it contained harmful chemicals.

If you or a loved one has been harmed by PFAS exposure, contact us today.

What We Know About Military AFFF Exposure

• In July 2026, a study of 2,056 career firefighters published in the Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine found that firefighters with previous or active military service had significantly higher blood concentrations of PFOS and PFHxS — two of the PFAS chemicals historically used in AFFF — compared to firefighters with no military service.

The study identified military service and AFFF use as significant predictors of PFAS levels in firefighters’ blood.

In 2023, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified PFOA as carcinogenic to humans and PFOS as possibly carcinogenic to humans.

• In April 2026, a study of aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) personnel from six U.S. airport fire departments found elevated blood concentrations of multiple PFAS chemicals compared to the general population.

AFFF formulations have contained PFAS since the 1960s, predominantly PFOS and PFHxS.

Federal regulations required commercial airports to purchase AFFF that met military specifications, and past employment in an occupation involving AFFF exposure — including military service — was associated with higher PFAS blood concentrations.

PFAS were detected in the tap water at three of the six fire departments studied.

• In July 2024, the U.S. Government Accountability Office reported that the Department of Defense uses AFFF in approximately 1,500 facilities and more than 6,800 mobile assets worldwide, and that the release of AFFF into the environment has resulted in PFAS detections in drinking water and groundwater in and around DOD installations.

Congress required DOD to discontinue use of AFFF at its installations after October 1, 2024, but DOD anticipated seeking waivers extending some AFFF use to October 1, 2026.

The estimated cost of transitioning away from AFFF exceeds $2.1 billion.

• In 2024, Disabled American Veterans reported that despite more than 700 PFAS-contaminated military locations being identified, the Department of Veterans Affairs does not concede PFAS exposure for veterans who served at those locations — forcing veterans seeking disability benefits to prove their individual exposure.

The 2022 National Academies of Sciences report found sufficient evidence associating PFAS exposure with decreased antibody response, dyslipidemia, and increased risk of kidney cancer, and limited or suggestive evidence of increased risk of testicular cancer, breast cancer, thyroid disease, pregnancy-induced hypertension, ulcerative colitis, and liver enzyme alterations.

In an August 2023 report to Congress, DOD defended its continued reliance on PFAS, stating that losing access to the chemicals “would greatly impact national security.”

• In September 2023, federal research linked PFAS exposure to testicular cancer in U.S. service members, confirming what military firefighters had long suspected.

Military firefighters trained and performed their duties with AFFF for decades without knowing it contained PFAS.

In 2020, Congress required the Department of Defense to offer active-duty military firefighters blood tests for PFAS, and in 2022, Congress passed legislation providing medical benefits and disability compensation to federal firefighters who develop one of 16 health conditions — including 14 types of cancer.

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