How a Vietnam Veteran benefited from the PACT Act

“This is a cold call but I’m not trying to extend your car warranty. I just want to let you know about the PACT Act,” is how Mike Boyd breaks the ice when sharing PACT Act benefits news to his fellow Veterans.

Boyd works at Atlanta VA as a PACT Act and social work toxic exposure screening (TES) navigator. The PACT Act passed in 2022 and VA has seen the greatest outreach efforts in its history. But some Veterans still haven’t heard about it.

“Veterans may not be aware of the PACT Act because they may not be a part of Veterans groups, see the flyers or connect on social media. The big bulk of the Community Care Veterans I’ve called are in their elder years, ranging from 65 to 80 years old. They’re not plugged into YouTube or seeing VA ads on the internet. I know from experience because my father would spend his time mainly watching westerns or the Grit channel,” Boyd shared.

The PACT Act expands VA health care and benefits for Veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange and other toxic substances. It also helps VA provide generations of Veterans and their survivors with the care and benefits they’ve earned and deserve.

“Anytime you get an increase in your pay, it helps you a lot,” said 82-year-old Army Veteran Wendell Bell (pictured above), who was 30% service-connected disabled and unaware of additional service-connected conditions he was made eligible for under the PACT Act. “I didn’t talk to anyone that didn’t try to help. Everyone was very nice to me.”

“Even if you’re 100% it’s important to apply.”

As the son of a Vietnam Veteran and an Army Veteran, Boyd says he can connect with Veterans by phone easily. “I always stress that health care is important. Even if you’re 100%, it’s important to apply,” Boyd said.

The main mission is awareness. The team provides PACT Act health and benefits information and offers a warm handoff to the Veterans Benefits Administration to get them the non-health benefits they’ve earned.

“This is only one small example of a ‘hard to reach’ Veteran that Mike and our team have helped,” said Lauren Ruchin, Atlanta VA’s PACT Act coordinator and TES navigator. “We are constantly reaching out to rural and elderly Veterans who may only be using Community Care to offer a toxic exposure screening and help make connections to VA benefits, health care and other psychosocial resources that may assist them.”

The Veterans Benefits Administration representative reaffirmed what Boyd had suggested to Bell: As a Vietnam Veteran, he should be entitled to more compensation.

The following week, Bell learned he was approved for a 30% increase to his service connection percentage, which brought his total service connection to 60%, making his wife eligible for VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (VA DIC) and Civilian Health and Medical Program of VA (CHAMPVA) benefits. 

“All in all, it was a nice experience, and I learned a lot,” Bell said.

What’s the PACT Act and how will it affect my VA benefits and care?

The PACT Act is the largest health care and benefits expansion in VA history.

With the PACT Act, Veterans may be entitled to additional compensation, as it has added more than 20 presumptive conditions for burn pits, Agent Orange and other toxic exposures and additional presumptive-exposure locations for Agent Orange and radiation.

VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation

If you’re the surviving spouse, child or parent of a service member who died in the line of duty or the survivor of a Veteran who died from a service-related injury or illness, you may be able to get a tax-free monetary benefit called VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.

Find out if you can get VA benefits or compensation.

CHAMPVA benefits

Are you the spouse or surviving spouse of or a child of a Veteran with disabilities or a Veteran who has died? If you don’t qualify for TRICARE (the Department of Defense’s health care program for active duty and retired service members and their families), you may be able to get health insurance through CHAMPVA. Through this program, VA covers the cost of some of your health care services and supplies. This is called cost sharing. Find out if you qualify for CHAMPVA and how to apply.