After previous denials, Michelle Hill received an official letter earlier this year from the Department of Veterans Affairs acknowledging her husband’s deadly cancer was caused by exposure to toxic burn pits.

“It was saying, ‘Yes, your husband’s service mattered,'” she said during an event Wednesday at the Mount Carmel Veterans Service Center.

Congressional approval of the Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics Act, or PACT Act, in August that extended disability benefits and health care to those exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange and other toxins made that acknowledgment possible.

VA Secretary visits Colorado Springs, discusses PACT Act benefits for veterans under ‘burn pit’ bill

It also granted Hill monthly pension payments because her husband, James, died of cancer in October 2017 that was caused by exposure to burn pits over three deployments as an engineer.

In March, she was approved for payments that will give her peace of mind and help with basic bills, such as her mortgage.

“This has made an enormous difference in my life,” she said.

An El Paso County veteran service officer helped her with the application, completing it in 45 minutes, an effort that could have taken her days, she said.

“I didn’t have to go back and relive any of those moments that were so difficult,” she said.

So far, El Paso County Veterans Services has filed 261 claims for benefits related to new conditions covered by the act, said Assistant Veterans Service Officer Charles Graves, with El Paso County. The Veterans Benefit Administration has adjudicated 29 of those claims, granting 24. He presented the data to U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, who hosted the event to hear from local veterans, their families and veteran service officers.

Don’t wait, apply for PACT Act benefits today

Graves said his office was working to get the word out about the PACT Act by holding monthly events where veterans can apply for benefits, enroll in VA health care and get screened for toxic exposure all at once. The toxic exposure is known to cause various types of cancer, asthma and other conditions, according to the VA.

The act also extends benefits to Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange in Thailand, a major change in policy, Graves said.

Hickenlooper underscored the difference that disability compensation can make in the lives of veterans and their survivors to change their lives, saying he would take Hill’s story with him to Washington, D.C., as part of his advocacy.

“Money is not everything, but it helps,” he said.

El Paso County is seeing a rise in demand from veterans interested in benefits following the approval of the PACT Act and wait times for an appointment are up from three weeks to six weeks, Graves said.

A federal bill that would grant $50 million every year for five years to improve outreach to veterans across the country and staff up offices like the one in El Paso County could help meet the demand and with general education, he said. El Paso County is home to about 92,900 veterans, about a quarter of 380,000 veterans living in the state.

“Many of our veterans don’t know what the PACT Act is and how it pertains to them,” he said.

Through August the El Paso County office plans to reach as many veterans as possible because those who apply before Aug. 10, 2023, will receive back payments for the time elapsed since Aug. 10, 2022, when the law passed, he said.

About 10% of the 380,000 veterans in the state likely experienced toxic exposure and qualify for benefits, but Graves said far, far fewer have applied.

Colorado Springs area military events starting April 9

“Our phones should be blowing off the hook, which they are, but they should be blowing off the hook even more,” he said.

The next PACT Act claims clinics will be held in two sessions at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. April 21 at the El Paso County Veterans Service Office. Clinics will also be held on May 19, June 16, and July 21.

Availability is limited, and pre-registration is requested, a county news release said. To register and for more information, contact the El Paso County Veterans Service Office at 520-7750 or vet@elpasoco.com.