The PACT Act rewrote the rules for Gulf War and post-9/11 veterans exposed to burn pits and airborne hazards. Here is what changed.
The PACT Act is the largest expansion of veteran benefits in a generation, and Gulf War and post-9/11 veterans are among the biggest beneficiaries. If you breathed the air near a burn pit, this law was written for you.
What the PACT Act added
The law created new presumptions for conditions tied to burn pits and airborne hazards, including numerous respiratory conditions and cancers, and expanded the list of qualifying locations and exposures. For covered veterans, the VA concedes the exposure and the connection.
TERA and the exposure interview
Even outside the presumptive list, the VA now performs a Toxic Exposure Risk Activity (TERA) assessment for many claims, opening a path to service connection on a direct basis. Documenting where you were and what you were exposed to is critical.
File. Even if you were denied before the PACT Act, the legal landscape has changed in your favor.
The regulatory authority behind toxic-exposure claims lives in M21-1, Part IV, Subpart ii, Chapter 2, Section C (Service Connection for Disabilities Resulting from Exposure to Environmental Hazards). This section governs how raters develop and adjudicate toxic-exposure claims, including burn-pit, Agent Orange, contaminated-water, and radiation claims, and cross-references the PACT Act's conceded-exposure framework under 38 U.S.C. §1168 (TERA). When a C&P examiner renders a negative nexus opinion without addressing the documented exposure pathway, that opinion is inadequate under Barr v. Nicholson, and raters are required to return it for a supplemental opinion. Veterans who receive a denial after a cursory exam should cite the specific M21-1 development procedures the rater failed to follow.
