Farm Bill small victory

Washington — The $288 billion Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 passed both the House and the Senate, even surviving a Presidential veto.

While a few issues important to veterinarians were included, there is still no money going to what is arguably the profession's most important need – building capacity in veterinary medical education and expanding the work force of veterinarians in public health practice and biomedical research.

That's why the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) will keep working diligently on the Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act (VPHWE.)

The Farm Bill included legislation on animal health, ranging from food- safety protection and bioterrorism prevention to the importation of healthy puppies.

But the Veterinary Workforce Grant Program (VWGP), the original version of the VPHWE, was removed from the Farm Bill in conference committee.

The committee takes the House and Senate versions and reconciles the differences, said Dr. Mark Lutschaunig, division director with the AVMA government-relations division in Washington.

When a provision is only in one version (for example, the VWGP was only in the Senate version) – it is a bit more difficult to keep it in the final bill, he said.

"From conversations we had with House and Senate ag committees, there were concerns because, according to them, the federal government does not provide construction funding for private entities. Hence, it was removed from the final version of the bill," Lutschaunig said.

AVMA did lobby the conference panel to keep the provision in the bill, while at the same time working with the Health Subcommittee of the Energy and Commerce Committee to move the stand-alone bill – the VPHWE – to the full committee.

"A lot of veterinarians are going to be retiring over the next 10 years," Lutschaunig said.

"There are a lot of implications to that. Veterinarians are critical components to keeping our food safe and keeping foreign animal diseases out of the country. If an animal is sick with disease and it takes the veterinarian days to get there, the disease can spread very rapidly, which could have major implications."

Lutschaunig said VPHWE is an Active Pursuit of Passage for the AVMA.

"We worked very hard and utilized a lot of resources to keep the provision in the Farm Bill and we are working hard to move the stand-alone bill," he said.

As for the Farm Bill, both the House and Senate overwhelmingly favored it. President Bush vetoed it on May 21, but an override vote succeeded. The bill will be in effect through 2012.

Lutschaunig said the agency was pleased overall, but more work is needed.

"There were a number of items in the bill that impact animal health or the veterinary profession and will directly benefit the profession and animal health and welfare," he said.

Specifically, the Farm Bill authorizes $2.5 million annually for the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank (FARAD), a resource used to ensure contaminants do not end up in meat, milk and eggs.

"The authorization for funding was really critical because FARAD is severely underfunded and only has enough money to get through the end of September," Lutschaunig said.

The Farm Bill's passage also means there finally is language in place for the National Veterinary Service Act (NVMSA).

Passed in 2003, it has yet to be put into effect by the Department of Agriculture.

The NVMSA helps veterinarians repay student loans if they work in underserved areas, the food safety inspection service, public health, biomedical research and academia.

Already, $2 million has been put aside for NVMSA, but more is needed.

The Regional Centers of Excellence provision, also part of the Farm Bill, will create regional areas where specialized veterinary medicine is taught.

For example, instead of all veterinary schools having expertise in all areas – and paying for it – one school might become the regional center for swine and another might have an emphasis in poultry, Lutschaunig said.

"It's more efficient," he said. "That's not to say schools won't teach those things, but if you wanted concentrated training, you would go to a regional center."

Finally, an amendment mandating that dogs imported into the United States are healthy, at least 6 months old and have all necessary vaccinations was part of the Farm Bill.

"We're seeing a lot of puppies coming in from various countries that are very young, sometimes very sickly and not cared for properly or shipped properly," Lutschaunig said.

The only exceptions under the new regulations are for dogs imported for research or emergency veterinary treatment.