After a massive push from veteran groups, the PACT Act, a legislation that would increase funding for veteran healthcare, passed the U.S. Senate on Tuesday evening.
The legislation primarily provides health coverage for those affected by burn pits. The pits were created mainly by the military in Afghanistan and parts of the middle east to dispose of rubber or metal. Often, service members were forced to inhale toxic fumes released by the burning piles of metals.
The news comes after Republicans blocked a veterans health bill last week and fist bumped afterward.
Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) both came to an agreement for the bipartisan rearrangement of the bill. President Joe Biden said that he will sign the bill as soon as he receives it.
Biden watched from the White House as the bill was debated. When the bill passed, Biden wrote on Twitter, “We’ll never be able to repay the debt we owe to those who have worn the uniform, but today, Congress delivered on a promise to our veterans and their families.”
