Super Bowl-Bound Veteran Champions Benefits for Veterans
Navy Veteran Marc McCabe has spent a lifetime serving our country, and this weekend he’ll have the chance to share a few stories as one of eight Veterans selected by USAA® to attend Super Bowl LVII in Arizona.
But the stories he plans on highlighting aren’t his.
“We want to get Veterans the highest level of disability, by law,” said McCabe. “This is important because it can immensely impact their quality of life.”
McCabe has served as a Veterans Service Officer since 2010. As a Department of Veterans Affairs-accredited representative, McCabe, along with his team has helped countless Veterans, families, and survivors receive their benefits and entitlements.
“We’re a team,” offered McCabe. “I got rewarded because of what my team did, but I am only as good as the people I work with.”
McCabe began his service in 1968 and was part of the external evacuation force for the Vietnam War. As a result of his service overseas, McCabe was a long-time advocate for all Veterans deployed to Southeast Asia during that conflict.
“Before last year, only Veterans who were boots on the ground in Vietnam, or a dog handler, or security in Thailand could qualify for benefits as a result of Agent orange,” said McCabe. “But when the PACT Act was signed into law, it became a game changer.”
McCabe added that one of the most important implications of the PACT Act are the benefits afforded to surviving spouses and children born to Veterans following the Vietnam War.
“Now we have a way to ensure the children of Vietnam Veterans who were effected by disability and birth defects from toxic exposure get disability. This is a much-needed bill that will help so many Veterans who were previously denied.”
Specifically, for Veterans who served during the Vietnam War, the PACT Act added two new Agent Orange presumptive conditions:
- High blood pressure (also called hypertension)
- Monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS)
However, McCabe emphasized that the PACT Act doesn’t just cover the Vietnam Era. The VA has called the PACT Act the largest health care and benefit expansion in VA history. Specifically, Veterans should know that the PACT Act:
- Expands and extends eligibility for VA health care for Veterans with toxic exposures and Veterans of the Vietnam, Gulf War, and post-9/11 eras
- Adds 20+ more presumptive conditions for burn pits, Agent Orange, and other toxic exposures
- Adds more presumptive-exposure locations for Agent Orange and radiation
Most importantly, the PACT Act requires VA to provide a toxic exposure screening to every Veteran enrolled in VA health care.
For assistance applying for PACT Act benefits, Veterans can reach out through MyHealtheVet to make an appointment for a screening or attend one of the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System’s planned outreach events this year.