NewsWire

A bipartisan group of U.S. representatives and senators has introduced legislation that would strengthen federal programs combating destructive foreign animal diseases (FAD) that threaten U.S. livestock. Introduced in the U.S. House and Senate on May 19 the Foreign Animal Disease Prevention, Surveillance, and Rapid Response Act of 2023 (H.R. 3419/S. 1666) would reauthorize and increase annual appropriations for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Animal Disease Preparedness and Response Program (NADPRP) to $70 million and National Animal Vaccine and Veterinary Countermeasures Bank (NAVVCB) to $150 million. Additionally, the bill would raise...

Dear KVMA member, Please take the next 5 to 10 minutes to tell us how we are doing. The KVMA board of directors wants to understand the needs and expectations of our members. We want to ensure that our current and future offerings, services, and programs not only meet but exceed your expectations. To accomplish this goal, we ask for your participation in the KVMA Member Assessment Survey. By completing this questionnaire, you will not only help us learn what is important to you, but also what we can do to...

The KVMA has just learned Dr. Darrell (Doc, DC) Phillips passed away on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. A practice owner in WaKeeney, KS, Dr. Phillips was a lifetime member of the KVMA, attending nearly every KVMA meeting up until our last meeting in 2019. Although he retired in 1995, Doc maintained his Kansas veterinary license until his passing. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 23 at the First United Methodist Church of WaKeeney.  A visitation will be at the church Monday, May 22, from 6-8 p.m.  Inurnment will be at...

Update from AVMA: Thank you for all of the help with the federal xylazine bill. We are now up to 60 cosponsors in the House, with some additional verbal commitments that have not yet made it to the official listing. We also have 10 cosponsors in the Senate and are working on more. Today, through the National Association of Attorneys General, 39 state Attorney Generals signed onto a letter to both House and Senate leadership calling for the enactment without delay of our Combatting Illicit Xylazine legislation (HR 1839/ S 993). This...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has granted a conditional license for the first therapeutic solution to treat canine parvovirus (CPV). Canine Parvovirus Monoclonal Antibody—Elanco's first monoclonal antibody treatment—is a single, intravenous dose used to treat clinical signs caused by parvo in sick puppies and dogs, regardless of vaccination status. The treatment can be administered to dogs 8 weeks or older with CPV, according to a May 2 Elanco announcement. It is expected to be available to veterinarians for direct purchase through Elanco, pending individual state approvals. CPV is a highly contagious virus that can...

Elanco’s Varenzin-CA1 is the first drug for the control of nonregenerative anemia associated with chronic kidney disease (CKD) in cats for which the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted conditional approval, the agency announced May 1. Varenzin-CA1 is available only by prescription from a licensed veterinarian. CKD is a disease that requires day-to-day management in cats, and nonregenerative anemia is a complication that often contributes to death or euthanasia of affected cats because of poor quality of life. Cats with CKD develop nonregenerative anemia when their kidneys produce less of a...

The Biden administration designated fentanyl combined with xylazine as an “emerging threat” to the U.S. on April 12. The designation will allow the federal government to put together resources to counteract the illegal supply of the drug combination found nationwide. It’s the first time the United States has declared a drug an emerging threat, a category enabled by a 2018 federal bill, said Rahul Gupta, MD, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) in a press release from the administration. Illicit xylazine’s growing role in being sold illegally and overdose...

Greetings friends and colleagues, We hope everyone is doing well. The KVMA and KBVE are holding joint sessions to discuss the opportunity to update/modernize the veterinary practice act. We hope by now you have been made aware of the draft that the KBVE has initiated. The sessions are open to all licensed veterinarians in the state of Kansas, whether you are a KVMA member or not. We encourage you to attend as this Act will affect each and every one of us. Our veterinary practice act is overdue to be updated. We are all working to...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that in April it will begin phasing in inspectional activities in relation to Guidance for Industry #256, Compounding Animal Drugs from Bulk Drug Substances. In this guidance, the FDA specifies the circumstances in which it plans to exercise enforcement discretion for relevant violations of the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act for drug approval, labeling, and manufacturing. This means that although compounding from bulk substances for animal patients is still considered illegal, pharmacists and veterinarians may compound drugs in this way, without...

The Food and Drug Administration announced Dec. 8 that the agency has approved the first oral animal drug to improve glycemic control in otherwise healthy cats with diabetes mellitus not previously treated with insulin. Bexacat is an inhibitor of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2, the first SGLT2 inhibitor approved by the FDA for any nonhuman animal species. Bexagliflozin, the active ingredient in Bexacat, prevents a cat’s kidneys from reabsorbing glucose into the blood, causing excess glucose to be passed out in the urine and resulting in lowered blood glucose. Bexacat is given to...

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