Senator Hassan, Rep. Pappas Highlight PACT Act Two Year Anniversary with Roundtable Conversation with New Hampshire Veteran Community

MANCHESTER, NH - Ahead of the two-year anniversary of the Honoring Our PACT Act this weekend, U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan (NH) and Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), Ranking Member of the Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs (DAMA) Subcommittee of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee (HVAC), joined New Hampshire veterans, local Veterans Service Organization (VSO) leaders, and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) representatives for a roundtable conversation on PACT Act implementation and veterans experiences since the historic legislation was signed into law. Earlier this year, the VA announced that more than one million PACT Act-related claims had been approved, including for more than 3,300 Granite State veterans.

"It was great to hear from veterans, Veterans Service Organizations, and representatives from the VA about how PACT Act implementation has progressed in New Hampshire and how we can improve the process for veterans," said Senator Hassan. "It was also important to hear from the VA about its inaccurate budget projections, and while we work in Congress to ensure that the VA gets the resources it needs to deliver the benefits that veterans have earned and deserved, we also need to prevent similar miscalculations from happening again."

"Two years ago, the PACT Act was signed into law, finally recognizing toxic exposure as a cost of war and fulfilling our promise to veterans who became sick due to their time in service. To date, thousands of New Hampshire veterans have filed PACT Act-related claims and have enrolled in VA care for the first time," said Congressman Chris Pappas. "As we continue outreach efforts to veterans and monitor VA's implementation of this landmark legislation on the Veterans Affairs Committee, I'll continue to have conversations with the New Hampshire veteran community to ensure they are being heard, their needs are being met, and that every toxic-exposed veteran and their survivors gets the benefits they need and have earned. Thank you to our veterans, VSOs, and VA representatives for joining this roundtable conversation and for the work you do every day to advocate and deliver for our veterans."

Senator Hassan helped negotiate and pass into law the PACT Act, which fundamentally reforms and improves how veterans exposed to toxic substances receive health care and benefits from the VA.

As then-Chair of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee on the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, Pappas participated in bipartisan House negotiations to draft and pass the PACT Act, which included his bipartisan legislation the VA Workforce Investment and Expansion Act, which expands the VA's workforce by enhancing VA hiring practices and incentives to better recruit and retain health care professionals and strengthen veteran access to quality VA health care. Last week, Pappas wrote to Speaker Mike Johnson urging Congress to work in a bipartisan fashion to pass emergency supplemental funding to safeguard the benefits of millions of veterans across the country.

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