(ABC 6 News) – Military veterans sacrifice many things in their time of service. Being on the frontlines and exposing their health to dangerous chemicals is just one of those sacrifices.

On Wednesday local veterans got some help getting important health benefits. The VA worked with Olmsted County to host a clinic for PACT Act claims.

The Senate passed the PACT Act last year to provide more health care benefits for veterans who have suffered from Agent Orange and other chemical exposures. But, since it’s passed, veterans have had a hard time finding out what they qualify for, leading to clinics popping up in Minnesota.

Tom Wacholtz served in the Army with the 82nd Airborne Division in the Vietnam war in 1968 and 1969. He learned about the VA event through his veteran service officer with Olmsted County.

“This wasn’t available when I got out of the service initially, but the biggest thing is you see the changes that are going on,” Wacholtz said. “You see where people are becoming a lot more compassionate about veterans. When I go to the clinic here, these people are unreal.”

For veterans like Wacholtz, getting immediate in-person help for benefits has been difficult in rural Minnesota.

The VA Benefits office is in St. Paul. Now, that office is travelling the state to reach veterans closer to home. Olmsted county is the second stop, after VA Benefits workers stopped in Stearns County earlier this month.

“What we’re recognizing is that people have a lot of questions about their claims. Claims get denied, people have questions, ‘what do I qualify for?’ There’s lots of information that’s going around right now and this was super cool opportunity for our offices to come together,” said Tiffany Canfield, Manager of Olmsted County Veteran Services.

“Obviously being in St. Paul, we’re able to service those folks in Hennepin, Ramsey, and even Dakota County,” added Charles Martin, Veterans Service Center Manager. “But actually, you know, extending our footprint down to Olmsted is a tremendous opportunity. It’s something that we’re looking forward to doing going forward.”

With the planned expansion outreach of the VA’s clinics in 2024, Wacholtz hopes his fellow veterans across the state will take advantage of.

“I think what they’re going to find out is the system is trying to change what the past was to the current way of operating to help the veterans that are going through some tough times,” said Wacholtz.

The Veterans Service Center will begin to host these clinics more frequently in 2024 across more rural Minnesota counties so the veterans living there, can have better access and understanding to the benefits they qualify for.