More than 500,000 claims have been filed by veterans and their survivors seeking exposure-related benefits under the PACT Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden last year.

Since Biden signed the act into law last August, toxic exposure screenings have been given to more than 3 million veterans, 42% of whom expressed worry about exposure, the VA said in a news release. The VA also noted more than 215,000 veterans sought healthcare, up 15% from the same period last year.

“Thanks to President Biden, the millions of veterans who fought our wars for the past 30 years — who breathed in debris from sandstorms, fumes from burning trash and more while overseas — are now taken care of for the conditions that followed them home from war,” U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough said in the news release. “We’re proud that 500,000+ veterans and survivors have applied for their hard-earned benefits to date, but we won’t rest until every veteran and every survivor gets the VA health care and benefits they deserve.”

More than 500,000 claims for compensation due to toxic exposure have been placed by veterans and their survivors, who have turned in claims and received more than $1 billion in compensation, according to the release.

The VA also said its office processed the 1 millionth veteran claim for disability benefits and pensions for fiscal year 2023, the release reported. This claim puts VA on pace to tackle a record number of claims for the third consecutive year, after setting a record number of benefit claims in 2021 and outpacing that number last year.

To handle all these claims, the VA said it has modernized its processes and has been recruiting, with 27,181 new hires during the first six months of the fiscal year, the release said. Already in fiscal year 2023, veterans have received more than $65 billion in earned compensation benefits.