President Biden signed landmark legislation Wednesday expanding benefits to millions of veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service.
“This is the most significant law our nation has ever passed to help millions of veterans who were exposed to toxic substances during the military services,” Biden said in remarks when signing the bill, as The Hill reported. “When they came home, many of the fittest and best warriors that we sent to war were not the same. Headaches, numbness, dizziness, cancer. My son Beau was one of them.”
The bill adds 23 illnesses to the list of conditions the Department of Veterans Affairs will automatically consider to be service-related. Previously, a veteran had to prove the connection between their illness and their service.
VA has a web site, “The PACT Act and your VA benefits,” with background information and links to file for claims.
The new law also allows service members and military families to sue the federal government for illnesses linked to contaminated water at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina from 1953 to 1987, as On Base reported.
White House photo via Twitter