Pursuant to the Joint Resolutions, the Board of Veterinary Medicine (“Board") and the State Veterinarian convened a workgroup which met multiple times over the course of 2024. The workgroup considered the required topics of the Joint Resolutions, which were as follows:

1. Identify ways to strengthen existing debt repayment programs for veterinarians, including making recommendations on how to simplify application criteria, explore state matching loan repayment programs, limit barriers for participation, and improve methods for consistent identification of veterinary shortage areas to better target rural communities in need.

2. Explore options for developing programs that offer business support to provide incentives or low-interest business loans for large animal private practices.

3. Identify programs that support a strong pipeline of veterinary students from rural backgrounds and help such students navigate post-secondary education to increase retention.

4. Consider other possible solutions for increasing the number of large animal veterinarians in the Commonwealth, such as expanding veterinary technician-type or physician assistant-type programs to allow large animal veterinarians to expand their scope of practice in rural areas.

5. Reexamine the recommendations from the 2010 study on the shortage of large animal veterinarians published pursuant to House Joint Resolution 730 (2009). The workgroup identified four subgroups for areas deemed essential to this study, which were (1) supporting data; (2) financial resources; (3) licensed veterinary technician (“LVT") scope of practice; and (4) veterinary school class size. Each subgroup reported findings and recommendations to the workgroup as outlined below.

Supporting data

The supporting data subgroup recommended that additional governmental and private sector resources be identified to develop frameworks for proposed solutions. The subgroup further recommended that the workgroup survey stakeholders such as cattlemen, extension agents, and biological farmers, and use that gathered data to pinpoint shortage areas and assess ongoing needs.

Financial resources

The financial resources subgroup recommended exploring development of: (1) a loan repayment program that ties awards to practice in underserved communities; (2) matching awardees of grants with mentors to assist with grant-writing and other facets of mentorship; (3) developing a pathway for haul-in(*1) or shared use large animal veterinary facilities to address shortages in a variety of ways; and (4) expanding educational opportunities for participants in youth high school and agricultural development programs.

LVT scope of practice

The LVT scope of practice subgroup recommended expanding educational outreach to advance awareness of LVT as a profession. The subgroup felt this would serve as a recruiting tool and maximize utilization of LVTs in large animal veterinary practice. The subgroup additionally recommended expanding pathways to LVT educational programs and expanding opportunities for large animal training in LVT program curricula. The subgroup recommended developing a haul-in practice model to increase opportunities for LVTs in large animal medicine and recommended exploring title protection to address the misidentification of veterinary assistants as “technicians."(*2)

Veterinary medicine class size

The veterinary medicine class size subgroup recommended exploring additional funding options for students, expanding the scholarship programs for Virginia residents, and developing a loan repayment program to place new veterinarians in areas of need.

The full workgroup, based on the recommendations of the subgroups, believes four actions can be immediately pursued. Those include a request for budget funding to create additional seats for Virginia residents at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (“VMCVM"), a request for budget funding for a state loan repayment program to incentivize practice in areas of need, development of a regulatory framework for large animal haul-in facilities, and provision of additional pathways to large animal medicine and veterinary assistant programs that will attract and support large animal veterinary practice in rural Virginia.

As noted in the preface, this workgroup will span two years. This report comprises only the first year of work produced by the workgroup and its subgroups and should be viewed as an ongoing project that is not yet complete.
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(*1) Haul-in facilities would allow owners to bring animals to veterinarians to be treated at an inspected facility. Currently, there is no provision that allows practice to occur away from the location of the animal. Under current regulations, veterinary medicine may only be practiced out of a registered establishment categorized as stationary (“bricks and mortar") or ambulatory (generally house calls or farm visits). Large animal veterinarians often travel extensively to provide healthcare at animals’ locations, impacting patient safety and contributing to burnout and attrition. Haul-in facilities would enable veterinarians to treat more patients, would address environmental factors (inclement weather, poor barn lighting), and travel times without requiring the veterinarian to incur the financial burden of opening and maintaining a stationary establishment.
(*2) The Board of Veterinary Medicine routinely receives information through investigations, inspections and communication with the public that veterinarians, unlicensed veterinary assistants and the public use the term “veterinary technician" to describe all staff who assist the veterinarian, regardless of whether they are licensed. Unlicensed individuals have been identified as performing duties that require a licensed veterinary technician. This includes placing IV catheters, intubating surgical patients, and accessing/administering federally controlled drugs, all of which directly relate to patient and public safety.