The U.S. Senate-approved Health Care for Burn Pit Veterans Act, cosponsored by U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), includes provisions from the senator’s Toxic Exposure in the American Military (TEAM) Act.
The bipartisan, bicameral TEAM Act, S. 927, which Sen. Tillis sponsored in March 2021, aims to reform and improve how veterans exposed to toxic substances receive health care and benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
The U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee passed S. 927 but the bill stalled, prompting Sen. Tillis to include provisions in the Health Care for Burn Pit Veterans Act, S. 3541, which the Senate approved on Feb. 16 and sent to the U.S. House of Representatives for consideration.
“I want to thank my colleagues in the Senate for their unanimous support so we can finally provide our veterans the treatment they deserve,” Sen. Tillis said last week.
If enacted, the larger S. 3541 would offer United States combat veterans access to health care, including for veterans suffering from conditions caused by toxic exposures, such as burn pits, according to a bill summary provided by the senator’s staff.
Measures included in S. 3541 authored by Sen. Tillis would require the VA to screen veterans for potential toxic exposure; compile and analyze data to identify a potential link between a veteran’s medical conditions and toxic exposure; and to develop an outreach program to veterans and their families regarding benefits and support programs related to toxic exposure, according to the summary.
“As a senator from North Carolina, I know firsthand the obstacles thousands of veterans who have been exposed to toxicants while serving have had to overcome, including many stationed at Camp Lejeune who spent decades fighting for proof of water contamination and fair treatment for the damages caused by the military,” said Sen. Tillis. “One of my main priorities has been finding a solution so veterans are given a fair and uniform process to receive the health care and benefits to which they are entitled following exposure to toxicants during their service.
“That is why I introduced the TEAM Act that had widespread support, and I am proud this legislation includes multiple provisions I authored,” he said, noting that roughly 3.5 million post-9/11 combat veterans may have experienced some level of exposure to burn pits during their service.
Many of them, the senator added, may be “living with undiagnosed illnesses linked to military toxic exposures — and nearly one-third of those veterans are currently unable to access VA care.”