PVMA Keystone Veterinarian Summer 2021 - 25

AVMA Legislative
Fly-In Goes Virtual
By Kate Boatright, VMD
On Wednesday, April 21, 2021, veterinarians and students from
Pennsylvania joined over 200 others from around the United
States to participate in the AVMA's first virtual legislative fly-in.
During the event, meetings were held with Representatives
and Senators on Capitol Hill. Guided by training on advocacy
provided by members of the AVMA's government relations
division, participants met with legislators to ask them to support
the AVMA's position on two issues that will impact the practice
of veterinary medicine.
Oppose Prescription Mandate Legislation
The " Fairness to Pet Owners Act, " first introduced in 2011,
would create a federal mandate for veterinarians to provide
written prescriptions for all medications. This bill has been
reintroduced in several legislative sessions, but has never
passed, thanks in large part to advocacy from the AVMA. While
the bill had not yet been reintroduced in the current legislative
session, the AVMA wanted legislators to be aware of their
opposition to the bill in the event it is reintroduced again.
" Attempts to regulate prescription writing at the federal level
are misguided efforts to interfere with delivery of veterinarypatient
care, which is currently effectively regulated at the
state level, " according to the issue page on the AVMA's
Congressional Advocacy Network (AVMA CAN) website available
to AVMA members. As veterinarians are aware, the Principles
of Veterinary Medical Ethics states that veterinarians should
honor requests for portable prescriptions. Prescriptions are
already available to clients on request, making this legislation
unnecessary.
Support the VMLRP Enhancement Act
The Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP)
provides veterinarians serving in USDA-identified rural
veterinary shortage areas with student loan forgiveness. There
are currently five shortage areas identified in Pennsylvania. The
current funds received for the program are only sufficient to
fill about one-third of the open positions. The funds are also
subject to federal withholding tax, meaning 37% of the funds are
used to pay taxes.
The VMLRP Enhancement Act would remove the federal
withholding tax, allowing the current funds available to the
program to benefit more veterinarians and fill more shortage
areas. The AVMA supports this legislation as a way to address
two critical professional issues-student debt and rural
veterinary shortages.
How Can You Get Involved?
The virtual fly-in was the largest advocacy event in AVMA
history. Advocacy efforts are a critical part of the work of the
AVMA and PVMA, but they are more effective when members
are involved. Participating in legislative days with the PVMA
and AVMA has been very personally rewarding to me. They
have helped me to more fully understand the work of organized
veterinary medicine, engage with legislators on issues that
have the potential to affect my daily work life, and learn about
advocacy.
If you want to get involved with advocacy at the state or national
level, contact the PVMA or join the AVMA's Congressional
Advocacy Network (avmacan.avma.org). Only by advocating
with local, state, and national legislators can we continue to
advance and protect our great profession.
Thank You to the AVMA Fly-In Participants from PA!
Dr. Michael Bailey
AVMA Board of Directors
Dr. Kaitlyn Boatright
AVMA House of Delegates
Dr. Christina Dougherty
AVMA House of Delegates
Alexia Mazzarella
SAVMA House of Delegates
Dr. Frederick Schuler
AVMA PAC
Legend Thurman
SAVMA Governmental Affairs Committee
Claire Witting
SAVMA House of Delegates
Dr. James Zeliff
AVMA Legislative Advisory Committee
Pennsylvania Veterinary Medical Association | 25
http://avmacan.avma.org
PVMA Keystone Veterinarian Summer 2021

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