California Rep. Robert Filner, the principal author of House Bill 664 (HR 664), urged his colleagues to support the bill.
"We owe not only a debt of gratitude to these brave veterans, but we owe them recognition as veterans of the US military," Filner said in a statement. "We owe them the benefits they were promised."
Almost 60 years ago, US President Franklin Roosevelt drafted Filipinos to serve in the US military, the Philippines being a territory of the US at the time.
Filner explained that shortly after the war ended in 1946, Congress passed the Rescission Act, which took away promised benefits from Filipino veterans and refused to recognize their service in the US military.
Filipino veterans, now in their 70s and 80s, "are in desperate need of health care, and approximately five veterans are dying each day," Filner said.
Filner, whose congressional district has one of the highest concentrations of Filipino-Americans in the US, has championed the cause of Filipinos who served the US in World War II.
"There is overwhelming support for HR 664," Filner told his colleagues. "We must quickly pass this bill to begin the process of restoring benefits that are deserved by the Filipino World War II veterans."
HR 664, he said, would expand the coverage of Title 38 of the US Code, restoring the designation of veteran to those who served in the Commonwealth Army or Philippine Scouts.
The bill will provide access to hospital and nursing home care and medical services to these veterans, as well as dependency and indemnity compensation for their surviving spouse.
A version of HR 664, HR 4904, was introduced in the 107th Session of the US House of Representatives and supported by Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi.