{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://case.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2231", "Case Urges Hawaii Veterans Who May Be Eligible For Promise To Address Comprehensive Toxins (PACT) Act Benefits, But Who Have Not Yet Applied, To Apply By August 9th To Assure Retroactive Benefits", "2023-07-28", "2023", "2023-07", "Democrat", "House", "HI", "Ed Case", "C001055", "case.house.gov", "case", "https://case.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27&Page=12", "scraper", "(Washington, DC) \u2013 U.S. Congressman Ed Case (HI-01) today urged Hawai\u2018i veterans and their survivors who may be eligible for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care benefits under the historic PACT Act of August 2022, and who have not yet applied for PACT Act benefits, to file or at least complete and submit an intent to file before Wednesday, August 9th to preserve eligibility for retroactive benefits back to the law\u2019s enactment.\n\nThe Sergeant First Class (SFC) Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act is one of the largest VA health care and benefit expansions ever. It:\n\nExpands and extends eligibility for VA health care to certain diseases linked to exposures to toxins during service in the Vietnam and Gulf Wars and post-9/11 era as well as in nuclear testing.\n\nAdds over twenty presumptive conditions for burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic exposures.\n\nAdds more presumptive-exposure locations for Agent Orange and radiation.\n\nRequires the VA to provide a toxic exposure screening to every veteran enrolled in VA health care.\n\nHelps improve research, staff education and treatment related to toxic exposures.\n\nFor those veterans and their survivors, there is no deadline for filing PACT Act claims. But in order for any benefits to also be paid back to the date of the law\u2019s enactment, those claims must be filed by August 9, 2023.\n\n\u201cLast year, I was honored to co-introduce and vote for the PACT Act to keep our promise to our nation\u2019s veterans,\u201d said Case, a member of the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations and of its Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs (2019-2023) and Subcommittee on Defense (2023-). \u201cBut this law is only as good as our veterans and survivors gaining full access to authorized benefits including back pay and care where eligible. I want to ensure that all eligible Hawai\u02bbi veterans and their survivors not only apply for PACT Act benefits but do so by August 9th to qualify for the retroactive benefits.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe VA has also consistently said that even if veterans and survivors are uncertain whether they are eligible for PACT Act benefits, they should apply anyway,\u201d continued Case.\n\n\u201cSo, if you have not yet filed and have any question as to whether you\u2019re eligible, I urge you to file by August 9th to maximize any benefits that may be awarded especially retroactively. Please contact my office at (808) 650-6688 or ed.case@mail.house.gov with any questions or needs.\u201d\n\nClick here to file your PACT Act claim or intent to file. Again, there is no deadline to apply for PACT Act benefits, but if you file your PACT Act claim or submit your intent to file before August 9, 2023, you may receive benefits backdated to August 10, 2022 when the bill was enacted. If you file a claim or intent to file after August 9th, you will not be eligible for the retroactive portion of any benefits awarded.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T00:18:03Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://case.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2231"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8546654134988785, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}