Wayne Allard: “Today, I am introducing the Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act, to address the growing shortage of…”

“Today, I am introducing the Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act, to address the growing shortage of veterinarians in the public health sector. Over the past decade, the world has faced a significant increase of newly emerging infectious disease outbreaks, including West Nile virus; Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, SARS; monkeypox; and avian influenza. In addition to their ability to cause severe illness, and even death, these diseases share another important characteristic: they are all transmitted from animals to man. Veterinary medicine is an integral and indispensable component of our Nation's public health system. Veterinarians protect human health by preventing and controlling infectious diseases, ensuring the safety and security of the Nation's food supply, promoting healthy environments, and providing health care for animals. Veterinarians are essential for early detection and response to unusual disease events that could be linked to newly emerging infectious diseases, or other biothreat agents of concern.”