The PACT Act PACT

The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, known as the PACT Act, was signed by President Joe Biden on August 10, 2022, after passing with large bipartisan majorities. It is named for an Army medic who died of cancer linked to burn pit smoke in Iraq. Military bases in Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere burned trash, chemicals, and medical waste in open pits, and many veterans later developed respiratory illnesses and cancers.

The law added more than 20 presumptive conditions, including many cancers and lung diseases, for veterans who served in covered locations, so they no longer have to prove the link to service. It added locations for Agent Orange exposure, including Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Guam, and American Samoa, and conditions such as high blood pressure. It expanded VA health care eligibility for post-9/11 combat veterans, required toxic exposure screenings at VA appointments, and created a trust fund to pay the costs.

Veterans filed claims in record numbers after the law passed, and the VA approved more than a million PACT Act-related claims within a few years, while hiring and overtime helped bring its claims backlog below 70,000 by mid-2026. The Congressional Budget Office estimated the law would cost about 280 billion dollars over 10 years. Supporters call it overdue recognition of a toxic legacy of war, while some lawmakers raised concerns at the time about its cost and budget treatment.