WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), members of the Senate Agriculture Committee, announced the formation of the inaugural Veterinary Medicine Caucus. 

The Caucus, which Klobuchar and Hyde-Smith co-chair, will raise awareness about the contributions veterinarians make to our nation’s economy, public health, food supply, and research as well as the health and well-being of animals and animal disease prevention. 

“Veterinarians provide a critical service to farmers, ranchers, and families,” said Klobuchar. “The bipartisan Senate Veterinary Medicine Caucus will give Congress new opportunities to work with veterinarians across the country to better support medical advancements, protect our nation's food supply, and to ensure the prevention of animal disease. ”

“The challenges facing the veterinary profession have the potential to harm broad segments of our society, particularly in rural America where a growing shortage of large animal veterinarians is critical. We formed this bipartisan caucus to focus attention on those issues in order to develop and enact policies that make this vital industry stronger,” Hyde-Smith said.

Klobuchar has previously led legislation to support veterinary medicine and the prevention of animal disease outbreaks. 

In May, Klobuchar and John Cornyn (R-TX) introduced the bipartisan, bicameral Animal Disease and Disaster Prevention, Surveillance, and Rapid Response Act of 2023 to support programs to prevent and respond to animal disease outbreaks. 

In 2020, Klobuchar and Tina Smith (D-MN) secured $180,000 in grant funding from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), $47,000 going to the University of Minnesota to continue their research in protecting our nation's animal health. 

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