Better than 50 local and area veterans took advantage of an opportunity to learn more about the PACT Act during a special information briefing at the Emporia American Legion Post 5 Saturday.
The PACT Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Biden last summer. Veterans Affairs Chief of Communications and Public Relations Sarah Dernovish says toxic exposure screenings began in November, with more than 10,000 screenings already processed. She says the PACT Act is important for one simple reason:
Eric Rohleder, the deputy director of the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs, encouraged veterans and caregivers to take action.
The PACT Act — officially known as the Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxins Act of 2022 — expands free health care for 3.5 million veterans exposed to toxic burn pits or oil well fires in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as Vietnam War veterans exposed to Agent Orange. There are three categories of healthcare eligibility criteria for veterans:
*Category 1 involves veterans who were involved in a toxic exposure risk activity while on active duty, active duty for training or inactive duty training
*Category 2 includes veterans assigned to certain duty stations at specific points in time — Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia or United Arab Emirates on or after Aug. 2, 1990; Afghanistan, Djibouti, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen or Uzbekistan on or after Sept. 11, 2001
*Category 3 is veterans who deployed in support of several military operations including Enduring Freedom, Freedom’s Sentinel, Iraqi Freedom, New Dawn, Inherent Resolve or Resolute Support Mission
Eligibility is also extended to veterans who served in Vietnam, Thailand, Laos or certain provinces in Cambodia in the 1960s and/or 1970s.
Veterans enrolled in VA health care will get an initial toxic exposure screening as well as follow-up screenings the next five years, while un-enrolled veterans will have an opportunity to enroll and receive the initial screening.
If you missed Saturdays’s briefing, there will be events Feb. 28 in Leavenworth, March 4 in Iola and March 11 in Sabetha with more to be scheduled later this year. More PACT Act information is available at va.gov/PACT or on the Topeka VA’s Facebook page. More information about the Kansas Commission on Veterans Affairs is available by calling the Emporia field office at 620-342-3347, visiting the Kress Center Suite 1D in downtown Emporia or by going online to kcva.ks.gov.
