As of July 2023, VA has received more than 14,000 claims for PACT Act benefits from veterans and survivors in Washington state
Senator Murray helped secure over $50 billion for PACT Act implementation to help connect Washington state veterans with new health care and other benefits
ICYMI: Senator Murray Applauds President Biden Signing the Honoring Our PACT Act into Law – MORE HERE
***LIVESTREAM HERE***
***PHOTOS AND B-ROLL OF THE EVENT HERE***
Seattle, WA – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Military Construction-Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee and a senior member and former chair of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, hosted a roundtable with local veterans, Veteran Service Organization representatives, and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) officials to discuss the implementation of the PACT Act, legislation Murray helped pass that is the largest expansion in veterans’ health care in decades. After touring VA Puget Sound in Seattle, Senator Murray was joined at the roundtable by representatives from the VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA), Veterans Benefits Administration, AMVETS, and Paralyzed Veterans of America.
The daughter of a World War II veteran, Murray has long focused on ensuring Congress lives up to its obligations to our veterans. During the roundtable, Murray made clear that she would conduct careful oversight over the implementation of the PACT Act while making sure VA has the necessary resources to administer the massive expansion of benefits. Passed last year, the PACT Act has expanded VA health care eligibility to more than 3.5 million toxic-exposed post-9/11 combat veterans, including more than 354,000 Washington state veterans.
“When we passed the PACT Act, it was the largest expansion in VA services in over 30 years. I’ve been watching closely ever since to make sure VA has the resources it needs and is getting the job done right for our veterans when it comes to implementing the PACT Act, including helping to secure over $50 billion for implementation,” said Senator Murray. “The PACT Act means a huge expansion of benefits and a huge uptick in claims, and I want to make sure things on the ground are working for our veterans. And as Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I’m going to make sure the voices of Washington state veterans are heard loud and clear in Congress.”
“At the State level, your WDVA stands ready to assist veterans and their families apply for benefits approved under the PACT Act. Our network of Veteran Service Officers includes state benefits specialists, county veterans service officers, tribal veterans representatives and nonprofit veteran service organization partners. We appreciate Senator Murray for providing a forum for this conversation and feel strongly that partnerships among Federal, State, and Local offices will ensure that no matter where a Veteran asks for help, they are connected with the benefits and services they so richly deserve,” said David Puente, Jr., Director of the Washington State Department of Veteran Affairs.
“The PACT Act honors Sgt. First Class Heath Robinson who died in 2020 after battling lung cancer attributed to exposure to burn pits during his Iraq deployment. This law empowers us to presumptively provide the care and benefits to our Veterans suffering from more than 20 toxic exposure-related conditions,” said VA Puget Sound Health Care System Executive Director Dr. Thomas Bundt. “From our support of activities like Senator Murray’s forum today to our ongoing collaboration with other federal, state and local organizations, we will continue to advocate for every eligible Veteran and survivor on the benefits of the PACT Act and other entitlements available to them.”
“In one year’s time, the PACT Act has improved the health and well-being of thousands of veterans and their survivors, said Matthew Mickunas, President of the Northwest Chapter of Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA). “Other provisions in the bill addressing the way VA adds new presumptive conditions and helping the department meet infrastructure and staffing needs ensures this bill will have a positive impact on veterans for many years to come. The Paralyzed Veterans of America appreciate Senator Murray’s ongoing attention to the needs of disabled veterans and their families.”
The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022 does the following:
- Expands VA health care eligibility to more than 3.5 million toxic-exposed post-9/11 combat veterans;
- Creates a framework for the establishment of future presumptions of service connection related to toxic exposure;
- Adds 23 burn pit and toxic exposure-related conditions to VA’s list of service presumptions, including hypertension;
- Expands presumptions related to Agent Orange exposure—includes Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Guam, American Samoa, and Johnston Atoll as locations for Agent Orange exposure;
- Strengthens federal research on toxic exposure;
- Improves VA’s resources and training for toxic-exposed veterans; and
- Sets VA and veterans up for success by investing in VA claims processing, VA’s workforce, and VA health care facilities.
Key PACT Act numbers: As of July 2023,
- VA has received more than 14,000 claims for PACT Act benefits from veterans and survivors in Washington state.
- VA has approved more than 350,000 PACT Act-related claims nationwide. The top conditions are hypertension (Vietnam Veterans Exposed to Agent Orange) and respiratory conditions related to burn pits exposure (sinus infections, asthma, chronic bronchitis, etc.)
- More than 340,000 veteran claims have been approved.
- More than 7,000 survivor claims have been approved.
- There is nearly an 80% approval rate for PACT Act-related claims.
- More than 103,000 veterans with PACT Act-related eligibility have newly enrolled in the VA health care system since October 1, 2022.
- It is also estimated more than 3.8 million current enrollees are impacted by the PACT Act. To address the increase in demand for VA health care and benefits, VA has hired more than 38,000 Veterans Health Administration (VHA) and 4,982 Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) personnel in Fiscal Year (FY) 2023.
- VA has screened more than 4 million veterans for health conditions related to their toxic exposure.
Earlier this summer, the Senate Appropriations Committee, led by Senator Murray, voted 28-0 to approve the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies Fiscal Year 2024 Appropriations Bill, providing the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and related agencies $135.3 billion in non-defense discretionary funding, as well as $161.7 billion in mandatory funding, to fulfill our nation’s obligations to our veterans. The bill further provides advance appropriations for our veterans in fiscal year 2025, including $112.6 billion for veterans’ medical care and $193 billion for veterans’ benefits. The bill also includes $19.1 billion in defense spending for military construction and family housing this year—an increase of $70 million over fiscal year 2023—to upgrade and modernize critical infrastructure and support military families.
As a voice for Washington state’s veterans in the Senate, Senator Murray has been consistently fighting to make sure our country fulfills its promise to our veterans and their families, voting last year to send the PACT Act to the President’s desk and expand health care benefits for millions of veterans. Earlier this year, Murray introduced EHR Program RESET Act, legislation to restructure, enhance, and improve the new EHR program while increasing oversight on behalf of veterans, VA personnel, and taxpayers. Murray also introduced the bipartisan Expanding Veterans’ Options for Long Term Care Act this year, which would create a pilot program for eligible veterans to receive assisted living care paid for by VA—allowing aging veterans to live more independently and save taxpayer dollars.
Toxic-exposed veterans and survivors can learn more about the PACT Act and apply for benefits directly by visiting the VA’s website at VA.gov/PACT or by calling 1-800-MyVA411 (800-698-2411).
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