VA announces veterans can seek care for toxic burn pit, chemical exposures

Mar. 9—The Department of Veterans Affairs is opening up government-sponsored health care for veterans exposed to toxins and health hazards while in the military, years earlier than required under the PACT Act passed in 2022.

On Tuesday, the VA announced that all veterans who have served since the Vietnam War can enroll for VA health care without applying for full VA benefits, if they have a disease caused by exposure to toxic chemicals while training or stationed in the U.S. or abroad.

Since the Vietnam War, the U.S. military has used burn pits to dispose of trash, including hazardous waste, which are believed to be the cause of serious illness in a significant number of veterans. Chemicals used for tactical purposes, fighting fires and fueling equipment have also caused health problems.

In one case, soldiers stationed at a former Soviet submarine base were exposed to unknown, highly toxic chemicals, described as bright green, bubbling up from under the base.

The use of burn pits was prevalent until very recently, and the Department of Defense is still shutting down some pits at bases abroad.

Diseases like cancer, rhinitis, sinusitis, asthma and others have been observed much more commonly in veterans stationed at bases that used chemicals and burn pits. Lawmakers in Washington have fought for years to get the VA to presume these diseases were service-related, and therefore provide them health care free of charge at VA hospitals.

For years, the official position of the VA was that the chemicals and burn pits did not cause disease, and required veterans to provide some sort of evidence their disease was service-related. That process could take years, and resulted in many cases where claims were denied.

It's been a project of Sen. Kirsten E. Gillibrand, D-N.Y., since 2020, when she introduced the Presumptive Benefits for War Fighters Exposed to Burn Pits and Other Toxins Act, which was largely included in the bipartisan Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxins Act, or PACT Act.

That law provided for a phase-in of benefits over years, with a goal of offering health care to all affected veterans by 2032. But with Tuesday's announcement, the PACT Act has been fully put into effect eight years earlier than planned.

"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," VA Secretary Denis McDonough said in a statement. "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 today."

The VA is conducting a major awareness campaign for the expanded benefits, spending $13 million on advertising. VA officials said it is the single-largest program awareness campaign the department has ever undertaken.

To begin the enrollment process, eligible veterans can call the VA hotline, 1-800-698-2411, or visit VA.gov/PACT.

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