![Biden signs bill aiding veterans exposed to toxins](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/de/1b/88/Biden-signs-bill-aiding-veterans-ex-424366.jpg)
-
Concern grows as Venezuela blocks election observers
-
'Massive attack' on French rail threatens more chaos
-
'We did it!': France breathes sigh of relief after Olympics ceremony
-
Blinken, in Laos, set for talks with Chinese foreign minister
-
Regional concern grows as Venezuela blocks vote observers
-
Historic river parade, Dion show-stopper ignite Paris Olympics
-
Rainy Paris Olympic parade dampens many spectators' spirits
-
G20 pledges to work together to tax ultra-rich
-
The one of a kind Paris opening ceremony: five memorable moments
-
Justin Timberlake seeks to dismiss DUI case
-
Warner Brothers Discovery sues NBA over Amazon rights deal
-
Kobe Bryant locker, Maradona jersey up for auction in New York
-
Historic river parade launches Paris Olympics
-
Stocks rise as US inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
New York family of Holocaust victim reclaims Nazi-looted art
-
NASA Mars rover captures rock that could hold fossilized microbes
-
Thousands evacuate season's biggest wildfire in northern California
-
Sinaloa Cartel co-founder pleads not guilty after stunning US capture
-
Ethiopia mourns victims of landslide tragedy
-
Lady Gaga adds sparkle to star-studded Olympic show
-
Airbus and Boeing supremacy secure despite turbulence
-
Teams sail down Seine in rain-soaked Olympics opening ceremony
-
Norris hoping for more after topping Belgian practice times
-
West Indies' treble strike rocks England in third Test
-
Trump slams rivals as he meets Netanyahu in Florida
-
Olympic opening ceremony under way on River Seine
-
Mott's England future uncertain as ECB chief fails to offer support
-
Trump meets Israeli PM Netanyahu in Florida
-
S.African police say 95 Libyans detained at suspected military camp
-
Blinken set for talks with Chinese counterpart in Laos
-
Norris heads Piastri in McLaren one-two at Belgian GP practice
-
G20 seeks common ground on taxing super-rich
-
European medicines watchdog rejects new Alzheimer's drug
-
Harris gets vital Obama backing in battle against Trump
-
Habib, Ebden eye Alcaraz and Djokovic shocks at Olympics tennis
-
Stocks rise as inflation data boosts rate cut hopes
-
Long queues, ticketing problems ahead of Paris opening ceremony
-
Two Sinaloa Cartel leaders face US charges after stunning capture
-
Spain train driver jailed for 2.5 years over deadly 2013 crash
-
Paris poised for Olympic opening ceremony spectacular
-
Judoka fails doping test in first case at Paris Olympics
-
Holder and Da Silva keep England at bay after West Indies collapse
-
Alpine F1 boss Bruno Famin to leave in August
-
Ethiopia declares three days of mourning after landslide tragedy
-
Brazilian dunes dotted with dazzling pools make UNESCO heritage list
-
Rain, cooling slow huge blaze in Canada's Jasper park
-
French Rugby's Jaminet suspended 34 weeks after racist video: Federation
-
Osaka looking to turbo-charge comeback at Paris Olympics
-
Stock markets climb as US inflation rate drops
-
Russian central bank hikes key rate to fight inflation
![Biden signs bill aiding veterans exposed to toxins](https://www.berlinertageblatt.de/media/shared/articles/de/1b/88/Biden-signs-bill-aiding-veterans-ex-424366.jpg)
Biden signs bill aiding veterans exposed to toxins
US President Joe Biden on Wednesday signed into law a bill boosting benefits for veterans exposed to toxic fumes, a cause close to his own heart after his son died of brain cancer.
Burn pits, lit up with jet fuel, were commonly used to dispose of waste in military camps during the years of the US wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
They exposed large numbers of servicemen and women to potentially harmful toxins, although there is not always a proven link between the exposure and later illnesses.
The PACT Act, passed by the US Senate earlier this month after fierce lobbying by veterans and celebrity comedian Jon Stewart, will formalize new rules for ensuring access to medical treatment.
"Sometimes military service can result in increased health risks for our veterans and some injuries and illnesses, like asthma, cancer and others, can take years to manifest," the White House said.
"These realities can make it difficult for veterans to establish a direct connection between their service and disabilities resulting from military environmental exposures such as burn pits -- a necessary step to ensure they receive the health care they earned."
It described the bill as the "most significant expansion of benefits and services for toxic exposed veterans in more than 30 years."
Biden believes the pits are at the root of the brain cancer that claimed the life of his son Beau, who served in Iraq and died in 2015 at age 46.
Recounting his own many visits to US troops in Iraq as a senator and vice president, Biden described seeing "burn pits the size of football fields" filled with the "incinerated waste of war."
Subjected to "toxic smoke," many of the "fittest and best warriors that we sent to war" came home and "were not the same," encountering symptoms as varied as headaches and numbness, as well as serious diseases, Biden said.
"My son Beau was one of them."
O.Krause--BTB