WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, hosted a news conference call on Wednesday to discuss how veterans can find out their eligibility and sign up for VA benefits from the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022.

“This is a cost of going to war. If you were exposed to toxins while serving our country, you deserve the benefits you earned. Period. No exceptions,” Brown said. “It’s because of veterans and their families’ advocacy, persistence and insistence – that’s why the PACT Act is law today and that’s why we’re finally talking about how veterans can sign up to get the health care and disability benefits they’ve earned and deserve.”

John Boerstler, a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran and VA’s Chief Veterans Experience Officer, has signed up for PACT Act benefits and helps other veterans apply.

“As a veteran who has been exposed to toxins while deployed and as someone with many familial connections to the great State of Ohio, I am incredibly excited for the opportunity presented to VA to deliver more benefits and more care to more veterans and survivors in Ohio than we ever have with the implementation of the PACT Act,” Boerstler said.

Veterans and their families can learn more about their eligibility PACT Act benefits at VA.gov/PACT. VA facilities around the country will hold in-person town halls this week and next to provide information on what this law could mean for veterans and their family members.

Brown is the longest-serving Ohioan on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and has long fought to secure access to Department of Veterans Affairs health care and benefits for veterans who were exposed to toxic chemicals.