Legislative

28 January

Legislative action update

wsvma   |   Legislative

The Washington State Legislature is completing its third week of the 2022 Legislative session. The first of several self-imposed deadlines will be Feb. 3 when all bills need to have passed out of policy committees and advance to the Rules Committee or Fiscal committee or be considered dead for the session. One of the WSVMA’s prime member benefits is to monitor and track all bills that may affect the veterinary profession and to advocate to ensure the protection of veterinary practice,...

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21 January

State by State – AVMA legislative report

wsvma   |   Legislative, State Regulatory

The following State Legislative Update includes select summaries of bills and regulations tracked by AVMA Division of State Advocacy and introduced in December and January. ENACTED Prohibitions on breed-specific bans A bill in Indiana (IN SB 18) would forbid any law or regulation from preventing an individual from owning, possessing, keeping, harboring, transporting, purchasing, or selling a breed-specific dog. Meanwhile, a bill in Missouri (MO HB 1657 / HB 1588 / SB 697) would prohibit villages, towns, and cities from regulating dogs in a breed-specific...

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14 January

Washington Legislature convenes for 2022

wsvma   |   Legislative, State Regulatory

The Washington State Legislature convened on Monday, January 10 for a 60-day legislative session. In an election year, the session is shorter than the biannual 105-day session. The focus of the first three weeks will be consideration of these bills in the policy committees. Among the bills the WSVMA is watching: Senate Bill 5753 Increasing board and commission capacities SB 5753 is brought forth by the WA State Dept. of Health to enhance the capacity of certain health profession boards and commissions....

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10 September

Ballot initiative aims to postpone deadline to opt-out of new long-term care tax

wsvma   |   Legislative

This fall, voters may have the chance to weigh in on making the state’s new long-term care program an opt-in system. The new law as written is a mandatory program with a single opt-out timeframe that is approaching shortly. Workers in Washington only have until Nov. 1 to opt-out, which has been set up to help pay for nursing care and other support services for people who can’t care for themselves. The new 0.58% state payroll tax, paid entirely by employees,...

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02 July

Alleviating veterinary shortages: Efforts reintroduced in Senate

wsvma   |   Legislative

A bill championed by the AVMA has been reintroduced in the Senate that would enable more veterinarians to receive student loan relief, and help increase access to rural veterinary care across the country. The Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) Enhancement Act would remove the federal withholding tax on service awards, making more funds available to recruit veterinarians to states in need of essential services to maintain public and animal health. Veterinarians participating in the VMLRP receive up to $25,000 a...

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27 May

Washington’s new long-term care payroll tax is coming soon to: Important informational webinars offered

wsvma   |   Legislative, State Regulatory

Did you know that WA passed legislation and employees will pay a new payroll tax starting on Jan. 1, 2022, to fund a long-term care (LTC) trust? It is going to be funded by W-2 wage-earning employees, including practice owners. But will you benefit from your own contributions? A webinar featuring Dr. Darby Affeldt and Chris Sitek will discuss this and much more during this timely webinar. Topics they’ll cover include: The WA State Cares Fund Payroll deductions begin Jan....

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30 April

Newly signed bill by Gov. Inslee amends definition of compounding

wsvma   |   Legislative, State Regulatory

Substitute House Bill 1445 (SHB 1445) amends the definition of compounding for the practice of pharmacy in RCW 18.64.011(6). The current definition of "compounding" includes simple processes, such as adding water to an antibiotic or for instance, adding saline to a COVID-19 vaccine. Neither the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) nor the official United States Pharmacopeia (USP) considers those processes to constitute compounding. SHB 1445 changes the definition to: (6) "Compounding" means the act of combining two or more...

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26 March

Take Action: Ask Congress to advance One Health legislation

wsvma   |   Federal Regulatory, Legislative, One Health

With strong support from the AVMA, a bipartisan group of lawmakers has reintroduced legislation that would be an important step in implementing a nationwide, One Health approach to combat zoonotic diseases. The Advancing Emergency Preparedness Through One Health Act (S. 861 /H.R. 2061 ) focuses on prevention and improved coordination among federal agencies. It would direct the U.S. departments of Health and Human Services, Agriculture, and Interior to develop a One Health Framework that would accomplish these goals: Advance workforce development related to...

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19 February

AVMA State Legislative Update

wsvma   |   Legislative, Uncategorized

This issue of the State Legislative Update includes select summaries of bills and regulations introduced in January and tracked by the AVMA Division of State Advocacy. With a majority of state legislatures convening this month, we expect considerable activity in the weeks ahead. COVID-19 State policymakers continue to propose legislation in attempts to answer questions that have arisen from the COVID-19 pandemic. Connecticut CT SB 560 would establish a task force to study the feasibility of using scent dogs to identify persons...

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05 February

WSVMA Legislative Report

wsvma   |   Legislative

The Washington State Legislature convened on January 11 for a planned 105-day session and is in its fourth week. The House will conduct most of its business remotely, while a few legislators will be in Olympia. The Senate is attempting a hybrid model, where some legislators are on the floor, while others participate remotely. Despite the remote nature of the 2021 session, over 700 bills have been introduced in the House and the Senate to date. One major change this year...

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