Expanded Veterans Benefits Begin This Week
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will expand health care benefits to millions more veterans starting March 5 thanks to the PACT Act.
The PACT Act was signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022 to provide health care coverage to veterans exposed to burn pits and other toxic substances. The law requires the VA to presume toxic exposure for a wide range of veterans who served since the Vietnam War.
“If you’re a Veteran who may have been exposed to toxins or hazards while serving our country, at home or abroad, we want you to come to us for the health care you deserve,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough in a press release last week. “VA is proven to be the best, most affordable health care in America for Veterans – and once you’re in, you have access for life. So don’t wait, enroll starting March 5th.”
The PACT Act applies to veterans with any of the following service histories:
• You served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, or any other combat zone after 9/11, or
•You deployed in support of the Global War on Terror, or
• You were exposed to toxins or other hazards during military service.
“Beginning March 5, we’re making millions of Veterans eligible for VA health care years earlier than called for by the PACTAct,” said VA Under Secretary for Health Shereef Elnahal, M.D. “With this expansion, VA can care for all Veterans who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Global War on Terror, or any other combat zone after 9/11.
“We can also care for Veterans who never deployed but were exposed to toxins or hazards while training or on active duty here at home – by working with chemicals, pesticides, lead, asbestos, certain paints, nuclear weapons, xrays, and more,” Dr. Elnahal added. “We want to bring all of these Veterans to VA for the care they’ve earned and deserve.”
In a press conference last month, Dr. Elnahal said veterans treated for exposurerelated illness will not make copayments for appointments related to that care. Surviving family members may also be eligible for certain benefits.
One local veteran, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Record last week that the new law will provide much-needed assistance to Vietnam-era veterans who struggled for decades getting the federal government to recognize the harm of Agent Orange exposure.
The VA encourages veterans to apply for care or benefits by visiting the VA.gov/ PACT website or calling 1-800-MYVA411.