AVMA Urges Congressional Action on Veterinary Shortages

The American Veterinary Medical Association says veterinary shortages are threatening animal health, public health and the livelihoods of farmers and ranchers. The association Wednesday urged Congress to help address the issue by passing legislation called the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act. Data from the Department of Agriculture shows that 187 regions in the United States currently suffer from shortages of livestock and public health veterinarians. Increasing veterinary student debt, which reached $143,700 on average for 2016 graduates of veterinary colleges, is partly to blame for the shortages, according to the association. The Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program helps by offering loan forgiveness to veterinarians who commit to serving at least three years in underserved areas. However, AVMA says the program does not receive enough funding to meet demand, in part because each award is subject to an expensive income  tax withholding. The legislation supported by AVMA would eliminate the tax funding to support more communities in need of veterinarians, all within the current funding level provided by Congress. Colorado legislators this week rejected a bill proposing the “Product of the USA” label be reserved in the state’s grocery stores only for beef derived exclusively from animals born, raised and slaughtered in the United States. The Colorado General Assembly’s House Committee on Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources heard testimony from cattle ranchers and consumers stating that multinational meatpackers and retailers were deceptively applying “Product of the USA” labels on foreign beef sold in Colorado grocery stores, according to a news release by R-CALF. The committee voted 10 to 3 to prevent the measure from being debated on the Assembly’s floor by the state’s 65-member House of Representatives. This, R-CALF noted, occurred despite that testimony being uncontested and without public committee debate. The bill, HB18-1043, was introduced by Colorado Rep. Kimmi Lewis (R). Lewis was quoted as saying, “All I’m asking is that you take this bill to the floor” because Colorado consumers have the right to know where their beef is produced. “Consumers are looking at “Product of USA' and it’s a scam.” Committee members who joined with Lewis to bring HB18-1043 to the floor for debate were Representatives Perry Buck (R) and Lori Saine (R). Committee members who voted to defeat the measure included Committee Chair Jeni James Arndt (D) and Representatives Jessie Danielson (D), Chris Hanson (D), Dominique Jackson (D), Donald Valdez (D), Daneya Esgar (D), Dylan Roberts (D), Hugh McKean (R), Jon Becker (R) and Marc Catlin (R).