Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act Passes Senate

August 1, 2007 — 

The Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act , added as an amendment to the Higher Education Authorization bill, passed in the Senate on July 23rd.

The Act, sponsored by Colorado Senator and veterinarian Wayne Allard, would form a competitive grants process by which educational institutions could enhance their infrastructure to accommodate the training of additional veterinarians to work in the public health sector. Passage of this bill has been a major focus of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) and the AVMA for a number of years.

It is hoped that these grants could be used to increase the number of veterinarians graduating annually and encourage an interest in public health and food supply veterinary medicine. If passed into law, the bill would charge the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with overseeing the grants process. The bill moves now the House of Representatives for consideration.