Shaheen Hosts Panel Discussion Highlighting PACT Act's One-Year Anniversary of Becoming Law

Shaheen hosting a panel discussion in Manchester on the PACT Act.

**Later in the day, Shaheen visited Hampton businesses participating in an employment program; discussed food insecurity in Portsmouth.**

[Left] Shaheen discussing the Hampton Chamber of Commerce’s Pilot Program to recruit and employ Native Americans. [Right] Shaheen touring Gather‘s Portsmouth facility. 

(Manchester, NH) – This week, U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) hosted a panel discussion highlighting the one-year anniversary of the PACT Act becoming law. As part of the conversation, the panel discussed success stories and challenges and acknowledged the work that lies ahead. While there is no deadline to apply for benefits under the PACT Act, the panel highlighted the need for affected veterans to file a claim or submit an intent to file before August 9th to ensure their compensation is backdated to August 10, 2022, when the bill was signed into law. Shaheen was joined by the Directors of the Manchester and White River Junction Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Centers, the Regional Director of the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) and the Director of the Division of Veterans Services at the New Hampshire Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services.

“For too long, service members who were exposed to dangerous substances like Agent Orange were denied health care benefits through the VA. These brave men and women fought to preserve our freedom and safety – now it’s time to fight for them,” said Senator Shaheen, a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “I was a proud supporter of the PACT Act, a law that will transform health care for countless veterans. The VA has already received hundreds of thousands of claims, and I want to ensure that every eligible veteran or survivor submits a claim.”

The PACT Act is one of the largest health care and benefit expansions in VA history. The law expands eligibility for VA health benefits for Vietnam, Gulf War and post 9/11 era veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic substances and provides for toxic exposure screenings to veterans at their medical appointments. It codifies more than 20 respiratory conditions and cancers as connected to burn pits, meaning veterans with those illnesses are automatically eligible for care. Additionally, the law increases training and research into the issue, particularly among veterans who served in the Gulf War and post-9/11.

Through her role on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Shaheen has long championed and supported measures to help veterans who’ve been exposed to toxic or hazardous materials. In the fiscal year (FY) 2020 defense bill that was signed into law, Shaheen supported a provision addressing the health evaluations of service members who have been exposed to open burn pits or toxic airborne chemicals. Open burn bits were used extensively in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the FY2021 NDAA that became law, Shaheen also supported an amendment offered by Senator Tester (D-MT) that would require the VA to provide benefits for veterans suffering from four diseases associated with exposure to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War.

Later in the day, Shaheen visited businesses in the town of Hampton to hear about how the Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce is working with the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota to connect tribal members with seasonal employment opportunities in Hampton.

“Having low unemployment is a good sign for New Hampshire’s economy and is a very good thing for workers, but it does present challenges for many businesses, including seasonal enterprises,” said Senator Shaheen, a member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee. “Initiatives like Hampton’s Native American employment program go a long way towards alleviating this bottleneck for New Hampshire’s businesses and provides new opportunities for the program’s participants.”

As a senior member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, Shaheen has been a consistent advocate for New Hampshire’s small businesses and seasonal enterprises. In June, Shaheen led a bipartisan letter with Senators John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Angus King (I-ME) urging Department of Labor (DOL) Acting Secretary Julie Su to address the extreme delays affecting the DOL’s processing of labor certifications for H-2B visa applications. These delays are exacerbating severe staffing challenges for seasonal businesses that rely on H-2B visas to meet demand for their products or services.

Lastly, Shaheen visited Gather, an organization serving Seacoast residents experiencing food insecurity. Shaheen was joined by Portsmouth Mayor Deaglan McEachern for a tour of Gather’s Portsmouth facility, including the food pantry, warehouse and food bus, and a discussion about food insecurity in the region. Gather has seen an increase in demand for its services in the last year.

“As food insecurity rises in New Hampshire, the work of community organizations, like Gather, to provide accessible, nutritious food is more important than ever,” said Senator Shaheen. “Gather works tirelessly to combat hunger on the Seacoast and it was inspiring to see their mission at work. As Congress works to reauthorize the Farm Bill, I will continue to fight for federal nutrition programs and resources to address food insecurity.”

Senator Shaheen has fought to ensure vulnerable families are able to access the nutrition they need. Previously, Shaheen successfully led bipartisan negotiations to provide $13 billion in nutrition assistance in the emergency COVID relief legislation that was passed by Congress and signed into law in December 2020. In that measure, she secured a six-month increase to individual Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, $400 million to support food banks and food pantries and $175 million for senior nutrition services including Meals on Wheels, among other important provisions. In the fiscal year 2023 government funding bill, Shaheen secured $947,000 for the New Hampshire Food Bank to address food insecurity in the state. 

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