The brave men and women who have served in our military put themselves in harm’s way, and it is our responsibility to provide them with the highest quality health care for any illnesses linked to their military service.
It would create a concession of exposure for burn pits and airborne hazards, establish a list of presumptive conditions, and provide a framework for assessing future conditions linked to any toxic exposure, foreign or domestic, past, present, and future.
Hern provided no reasoning for bucking the delegation and his party on the bipartisan bill, which passed the House 342-88 Wednesday with the support of majorities in both parties. His office did not return Public Radio Tulsa's request for comment on why he voted against the bill.
The bill — the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act (or PACT Act) — was expected to be sent to the White House before the July 4 holiday but was stalled by technical problems with the measure. The House addressed those in a bipartisan vote last Wednesday. Advocates are hopeful that the Senate can move quickly on the issue this week.
We’re right on the verge of that with the Honoring Our PACT Act, a measure that seeks to correct yet another injustice done to our military veterans, along the lines of what happened to Vietnam-era veterans exposed to the herbicide Agent Orange.