Earlier this month, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved legislation that would improve access to healthcare for post-9/11 combat veterans exposed to burn pits and other toxic substances in the course of their military service.

The “Health Care for Burn Pit Veterans Act” passed the 18-member committee unanimously, hailed by both Democrats and Republicans as landmark legislation, and in the words of Republican Sen. Jerry Moran of Kansas, the bill’s co-sponsor, it’s “an important first step to make certain our veterans receive the care they need.”