Marco Rubio stumps in Pensacola; advocates for burn pits health care bill for veterans

Speaking to reporters Tuesday at a campaign event in Pensacola, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio said a bill that will provide health care coverage for veterans exposed to toxic burn pits in warzones will get a floor vote in the Senate before August.

"My understanding is that we're going to get a floor vote on our bill," Rubio said. "It's bipartisan, but it doesn't have unanimous support in either party."

The Florida Republican partnered with U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, to introduce bipartisan legislation to have Veterans Affairs cover health problems veterans face after being exposed to toxic pollution from burn pits that were common on U.S. military bases in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The Senate passed an alternate version of the bill that doesn't include the automatic presumption that if a veteran served in those war zones they were exposed to toxic chemicals. Rubio has called that version of the bill a "half measure."

A version of the bill that includes the presumption of exposure passed the House earlier this year, and Rubio said Tuesday he believes it will get a floor vote before the Senate goes on August recess.

Rubio spoke to a group of about 75 supporters and veterans at the American Legion Post 340 in Pensacola. A moderator asked the room how many people had been exposed to burn pits while serving in the military, and 10 people raised their hands.

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Rubio told the crowd that the main hold-up on the legislation passing is the concern that some people will get health benefits when they have no real health problems connected to burn pits.

"That's possible," Rubio said. "But I think if the worst possible outcome is that someone who served our country gets medical care and treatment, that's not a bad outcome."

Rubio said the current status quo of veterans having to fight with the VA to prove they are eligible for benefits while facing likely terminal disease from their exposure to burn pits is wrong.

"Someone facing those circumstances, not to mention the serious illness that may have a treatment, should not have to spend all the time trying to fight with their own government to try to prove that the exposure to this is what caused it," Rubio said.

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Rubio's stop in Pensacola Tuesday was part of his re-election campaign and to shore up support in the Republican-dominated Florida Panhandle. While Rubio may be facing at least four Republican challengers in the primary, none have gained traction. It was clear Tuesday that Rubio was looking ahead to his likely Democratic opponent, U.S. Rep. Val Demings.

But Demings isn't ceding the Florida Panhandle, as her campaign announced Monday that the Orlando congresswoman had made stops in several north Florida cities including Panama City and Tallahassee.

Rubio said he's been one of the most effective senators in the Senate, but the election comes down to who voters want to control the Senate for the next two years.

"If my opponent, Val Demings, who's a Pelosi puppet, or somebody else gets elected, they're going to vote for Chuck Schumer," Rubio said. "And Chuck Schumer is going to decide which bills come to the floor, and it'll be the bills the radical left wants for our country. So as much as anything else, when you're voting for a senator, you're voting for who is going to be running the Senate."

Jim Little can be reached at jwlittle@pnj.com and 850-208-9827.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Marco Rubio in Pensacola: Burn pits bill will get a vote this summer