Senate passes historic vote bringing health care relief to burn pit vets

For the millions of veterans sickened from their exposure to burn pits, their time for relief has finally come with the approval of a new bill to provide much-needed treatment.

The Senate voted 84-14 on Thursday in favor of the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022. The bill, which was passed with a majority vote, represents the most comprehensive veteran health care reform to date, establishing a presumptive service connection for veterans made gravely ill after inhaling toxic fumes that hung over their bases overseas, including in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

The Honoring Our PACT Act’s passage is a culmination of a decades-long fight by veterans and their families for the U.S. government to provide proper treatment for the severe illnesses any service members developed after they returned home from battle.

"You know, this is one of those days where you feel like all the hard work and the blood, sweat and tears that they all put in over all those years have finally paid off," comedian and activist, Jon Stewart, said during a press conference on Capitol Hill after the final vote. "The real work of administrating this bill begins. This doesn't solve anybody's problem. This just removes the burden from their fight that should have been there in the first place."