Washington, D.C. — Congresswoman Uifa’atali Amata is welcoming final passage of the SFC Heath Robinson Honoring Our PACT Act by the U.S. House of Representatives, as the bill will be sent to President Biden to be signed into law. The legislation is commonly known as the PACT Act, which stands for Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT).

 “This effort has been a big priority for the U.S. Veteran community, and the importance of providing these services to our Veterans has had strong bipartisan support in Congress from the start,” said Aumua Amata. “It’s good to see these policy improvements cross the finish line in Congress, a real victory for many of our Veterans. The next step will be oversight of the implementation to make sure these affected Veterans get the services and restoration they are due.”

The Act expands health care and disability benefits, presumption of service-connection, research, and resources related to Veterans who were exposed to toxic substances during their military service, including burn pits and other dangerous substances.

Specifically, the bill provides new eligibility for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical care – including mental health services and counseling – to Veterans who served in a toxic exposure risk activity (an activity that requires a corresponding entry in an exposure tracking record system), served in specified known exposure locations on specified dates, or deployed in support of a specified contingency operation.

Additionally, the bill establishes the Formal Advisory Committee on Toxic Exposure to assist with the procedures in establishing these presumptions of service-connection. Congress listened to the input of Veterans Service Organizations on this important issue.