Burning oil fields, like those pictured here during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, have commonly been cited as an example of toxic exposure during military service. (Photo: U.S. Navy)
On May 18, Senators Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kans.) reached a bipartisan agreement to advance the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics, or Honoring Our PACT, Act.
The act fundamentally changes how the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs evaluates ill veterans, creating a presumption that service-related toxic exposure is the root cause of dozens of illnesses and conditions. In effect, this presumption assumes that such ailments are a “cost of war,” and ensures that the VA covers the cost of treatment.
U.S. House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) introduced the bill last summer before it was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this year. The bill’s text is still being finalized; after which it will go to the Senate floor for a new vote. If passed, the bill will be sent back to the House for another vote on the prescribed changes.
If approved again, it will then be sent to the President’s desk. Earlier this year, the Biden-Harris administration issued a press release in support of the Honoring Our PACT Act. “The President believes that our nation has only one truly sacred obligation: to properly prepare and equip our service members when we send them into harm’s way and to care for them and their families when we send them into harm’s way and to care for them and their families when they return home.”
The Honoring Our PACT Act also has widespread bipartisan support as well as the support of dozens of veterans service organizations, including The American Legion.
It is currently unclear when the Senate vote will take place.
Author: Christian Southards
Coming from a family with a proud military background and wanting to contribute his writing skills to a worthy cause, Christian began writing for the California American Legion in August of 2020. His father is a 25-year Army Veteran and his grandfather served in the Navy during Vietnam.
