Relief is on the way for millions of veterans who were exposed to toxic smoke from burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan. With the historic passage of the Honoring our PACT Act, the biggest expansion of VA benefits in recent history, veterans may now claim presumptive benefits for 23 respiratory illnesses and cancers linked to the toxic smoke. The new law speeds up disability payouts to those individuals, with potential payments of $3,000+ a month.

Why are presumptive benefits important? Until until now, the VA has placed the burden on veterans to provide evidence of a service connection between their illnesses and a particular burn pit. That proved hard to do. Between 2007 and 2020, the VA denied 78% of burn pit exposure claims.

Veterans and their advocates have fought tirelessly to expand the presumptive benefits list for burn pits. The PACT Act is the result of that long struggle. Now, if you got sick after operating near burn pits for any amount of time between 1990 through the post-9/11 wars in Afghanistan and the Gulf region, you’re entitled to disability compensation without having to provide additional evidence.

What Are Burn Pits?

Burn pits were used in Iraq, Afghanistan and other Southwest Asian war zones to dispose of all kinds of military refuse, from batteries to body parts. As much as 250 tons of trash a day were burned with jet fuel in huge open pits the size of football fields, spewing toxic fumes and carcinogens into the air. The fallout from the use of burn pits has been described as the post-9/11 generation’s Agent Orange. That’s not just a metaphor. When trash is burned with jet fuel, it releases dioxin in the air, the same chemical used in Agent Orange. And that chemical persists in the body for many years. So it’s no wonder that veterans exposed to toxic smoke from open burn pits went on to develop a number of severe illnesses.

What is the PACT Act?

Thirty years after the first Gulf War veterans started coming home with respiratory ailments and rare cancers, the U.S. government finally honored its pledge to provide disability benefits connected to toxic exposures. The PACT Act, short for Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, is easily the biggest bill to fund veterans health care in decades. And it is largely focused on bringing relief to veterans exposed to burn pits in the form of presumptive benefits.

The VA estimates that 3.5 million veterans were exposed to burn pits, but not everyone exposed to toxic smoke has developed long-term illnesses. The severity of burn pit exposure-related illnesses depends on length of exposure, proximity, and other genetic factors. Still, enough veterans have reported similar illnesses following exposure to burn pits to justify expanding the VA burn pit presumptive benefits list.

The PACT Act also includes provisions for Agent Orange exposure and Camp Lejeune, the Marine Corps training base whose water was contaminated from the 1950s through the 1980s.

What 23 Presumptive Conditions Does the PACT Act Service-Connect to Burn Pit Exposure?

The presumptive benefits list now includes all respiratory-based cancers — not just rare ones —  which veterans’ advocates have long maintained are caused by burn pit exposure.

Here is the full list of cancers now assumed to be service-connected:

• Respiratory cancer of any type
• Head and neck cancer of any type
• Gastrointestinal cancer of any type
• Reproductive cancer of any type
• Lymphoma and lymphomatic cancer of any type
• Kidney cancer
• Brain cancer
• Melanoma

As we reported last year, asthma, rhinitus and sinitus are already eligible for presumptive benefits. The PACT Act adds 9 more chronic respiratory illnesses to the presumptive list. They are:

• Bronchitis
• Obstructive pulmonary disease
• Bronchiolitis
• Emphysema
• Granulomatous disease
• Interstitial lung disease
• Pleuritis
• Pulmonary fibrosis
• Sarcoidosis

Why It Matters

Expansion of the burn pit presumptive conditions list makes more veterans eligible for fast-tracked benefits. Presumptive claims have a higher approval rate, and are approved faster.

For veterans dealing with mounting medical expenses and unable to work and support their families, disability compensation can be a life-sustaining. It’s also a form of recognition that you sacrificed for your country, and for that you deserve to be fairly compensated.

Burn Pit VA Disability Rating

A 60% disability rating for burn pit exposure entitles you to over $1,000 a month in disability compensation. A 100% disabling condition entitles you to over $3,000 a month.

If you believe that your illness or disability is related to burn pit exposure, or you already receive benefits but your condition has worsened, do not hesitate to talk with one of our experienced VA-accredited claims agents about your options.