President Joe Biden spoke of the need to expand healthcare access for veterans, particularly those who were exposed to toxic burn pits during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, during a Tuesday afternoon stop in Fort Worth, Texas.
Echoing comments made during last week’s State of the Union address, Biden spoke of supporting veterans as one of his administration’s most important bipartisan initiatives, along with combating the opioid epidemic, caring for the mental health of children, and reducing cancer deaths by half.
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“We have only one truly sacred obligation,” Biden said. “That’s to train and equip those who will be sent into harm’s way and care for them and their families when they return home.”
Calling veterans the backbone, the spine, and the sinew of the United States, Biden told the veterans present for his speech, “You’re the best of us, and we owe you.”
The president spoke with a group of veterans earlier on his trip and shared the stage with Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough. He noted that there are 42,000 veterans in Fort Worth and 1.4 million in Texas.
“To this day, we average 17 veterans a day committing suicide. That’s more than get killed in combat,” Biden said. “It’s an absolute tragedy.”
During nearly two dozen trips to Iraq and Afghanistan during his time as a senator and as vice president, Biden said he saw burn pits firsthand and noted that many of them may have contributed to illnesses such as cancer that veterans suffered from after returning home.
Some burn pits, he noted, were the size of football fields. Biden mentioned his son Beau, a veteran of the Iraq war who died of cancer in 2015, as one potential victim of the effects of burn pits.
The president called for increased funding for VA research to study the health effects of toxic exposure in the military, an effort that has drawn bipartisan support in the House and Senate.
Among the initiatives Biden supports are a network of specialized care providers and call centers to connect veterans with medical care.
He called on veterans to share their stories and let the VA know when they need help.
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“We’re asking you to tell us. Tell us where you’ve been. Tell us what your needs are,” Biden said. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of — it’s something to be proud of. We owe you.”
