Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022: What to Know
September 09, 2022
On August 10, 2022, President Joe Biden signed into law the SFC. Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics – or PACT Act of 2022. The bill affords veterans their earned health care and disability benefits under the Department of Veterans Affairs. In this article, we will be examining who is eligible for VA disability benefits or healthcare with the passing of this bill.
Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022
The bill was named in honor of SFC. Heath Robinson of the Ohio National Guard who had served in Kosovo and Iraq. In 2020, Robinson passed away from lung cancer, which he believed was due to toxic burn pit exposure.
This bill will:
- Expand VA health care eligibility to Post-9/11 Combat Veterans, which includes more than 3.5 million toxic-exposed veterans.
- Adds 23 burn pit and toxic exposure-related conditions to VA’s list of service presumptions.
- Adds two presumptive conditions related to Agent Orange exposure. Including:
- Monoclonal Gammopathy of undetermined significance; and
- Hypertension
- Adds new geographic locations where service members are presumed to have been exposed to Agent Orange, including:
- American bases in Thailand and Royal Thai Air Force Bases
- Cambodia
- Laos
- Guam
- American Samoa
- Johnston Atoll
- Adds new locations where service members were presumed to have been exposed to toxic radiation, including veterans who participated in these response efforts:
- B-52 bomber nuclear weapon incident in Palomares, Spain
- B-52 bomber nuclear weapon incident in the vicinity of Thule Air Force Base, Greenland
- Each of these toxic exposures, whether from burn pits, agent orange, or radiation, have specific geographic locations and time frames detailing where and when the veteran served to establish that the presumption of toxic exposure applies.
Key Components of the PACT Act
On top of the already sweeping changes to veteran’s disability benefits and healthcare eligibility, the PACT Act will also make improvements to the Department of Veterans Affairs, namely:
- The Act expands and extends eligibility for Veterans with toxic exposures and Veterans of the Vietnam era, Gulf War era, and Post-9/11 era.
- VA will improve the decision-making process for determining what medical conditions will be considered for presumptive status.
- Every enrolled Veteran will receive an initial toxic exposure screening and a follow-up screening every five years. Veterans who are not enrolled, but who are eligible to enroll, will have an opportunity to enroll and receive the screening.
- VA health care staff and claims processors will receive toxic exposure-related education and training.
- The Act requires research studies on the mortality of Veterans who served in Southwest Asia during the Gulf War, Post-9/11 Veteran health trends, and Veteran cancer rates.
- The Act will help VA build a stronger, more skilled workforce to meet the growing demand for benefits and services.
- The Act authorizes 31 new medical facilities across the country, providing greater access to VA health care.
When Can I Apply for PACT Act Benefits?
The question on everyone’s mind right now is the same, “When can I apply for these benefits?”
On August 31, 2022, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs announced that all new burn pit-related presumptive conditions will go into effect as of August 10, 2022, the day the PACT Act was signed into law. That means veterans who qualify for the burn pit presumptive conditions can apply for benefits right away.
Other than those conditions, burn pit veterans who fall into 1 of 5 categories could apply as of August 10, 2022.
You can apply for benefits right away if you are a veteran or survivor who is:
- Terminally ill;
- Homeless;
- Under extreme financial hardship;
- More than 85 years old; or
- Capable of demonstrating other sufficient cause.
Otherwise, if a veteran or survivor does not meet one of these five criteria, the first date applications will be accepted is on October 1, 2022, for Monoclonal Gammopathy of undetermined significance as a result of Agent Orange exposure, then Hypertension as a result of Agent Orange exposure will go into effect on October 1, 2026.
The image below details the effective dates for each type of disability claim:
Service-Connection on a Direct Basis
The conditions included in the PACT Act will be presumed to have been caused by toxic exposure – in other words, the veteran no longer has the burden of proof to show that their disability was caused by their toxic exposures in service.
However, in the meantime, a veteran can still be granted benefits for their disabilities on a direct basis. This means that medical evidence establishes a veteran’s disability was as likely as not caused by an in-service toxic exposure – about a 50/50 chance.
Get The Benefits You Deserve | Legal Help For Veterans
If you are a veteran or surviving family member of a veteran who has developed disabilities related to agent orange exposure, burn pit exposure, or radiation exposure, call Legal Help For Veterans, PLLC for assistance at (800) 693-4800. Our VA-Certified attorneys have inspected this new legislation and are ready to help you get service connected!