Majority Leader Schumer Floor Remarks On The Senate Moving Forward On The Honoring Our PACT Act

Washington, D.C. –  Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) today spoke on the Senate floor regarding the cloture vote on the substitute amendment to the Honoring Our PACT Act, which will help veterans suffering from toxic exposure in the line of duty. Below are Senator Schumer’s remarks, which can also be viewed here:

In a few hours, the Senate will vote on cloture on the substitute amendment for the PACT Act, which Chairman Tester and Ranking Member Moran have been working on for months. It is my hope that we can finally pass this legislation in the next few days, well before the week is out. 

The changes outlined by the PACT Act are long overdue: it would make sure any veteran suffering from toxic exposure in the line of duty could get the VA benefits they deserve. It would end the indignity that too many veterans face right now of carrying the burden of toxic exposure on their own, and being forced to jump through hoop after hoop after hoop by the VA before they can get any benefits, and many never get them. As many as three-and-a-half million veterans could benefit from the reforms brought about by this bill.

I urge my colleagues to keep working so we can push this bill over the finish line ASAP, because both sides want it, our veterans deserve it, and the Veteran Service Organizations have been telling Congress for years that change is needed at the VA. So before the week is out, the Senate should do its job and pass this bill.

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