Friends,

I wanted to bring your attention to another exciting development in expanding health care for veterans!

You may remember that in 2022, we passed the historic Honoring Our PACT Act, legislation that dramatically expanded access to health care for veterans. This week, the VA announced that they are rapidly moving up the timeline to implement portions of this law, and as of March 5, all veterans who were exposed to toxins while serving in the military – in America or abroad – are now eligible to enroll directly in VA health care. More specifically, all veterans who served in the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Global War on Terror, or any other combat zone after 9/11 (and veterans who were never deployed, but were exposed to toxins while training or on active duty) will be eligible to enroll directly in VA health care without first applying for VA benefits, cutting red tape and making it quicker and easier for folks to access the benefits they’ve earned.

If you think you might be covered by this expansion, I encourage you to visit VA.gov/PACT or call 1-800-MYVA411 to learn more.

This is another major step forward for a law that has already been tremendously successful in getting more veterans access to care. Since we passed the PACT Act, roughly 115,000 newly-eligible veterans have enrolled in VA health care, and close to 800,000 PACT Act benefits claims have been approved. We’re making good on our promises to veterans… and now more provisions are going to happen even sooner than planned.

I’m proud to have supported and championed this historic law, and I’m thrilled that more veterans are going to have access to top-of-the-line care ASAP! If you’re interested in reaching out to me about the PACT Act or another issue that is important to you, I encourage you to contact me using the form on my Senate website. You can also follow me on Facebook, Threads, Instagram, or Twitter. I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,