Proposed legislation offers medical school tuition assistance

For many veterinary medical school applicants, the prospect of paying for tuition can be daunting. However, shortages in veterinarians in rural areas of the country have prompted legislators to propose an act that would provide financial assistance to degree seekers in this field.

Senators Tim Johnson of South Dakota and Mike Crapo recently introduced the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program Enhancement Act, which - if passed - would make the current loan program tax-exempt.

Currently, beneficiaries of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program are required to pay back 39 percent of their annual loan amount in federal taxes. However, students who receive a similar benefit to study human medicine are not taxed on their loans.

Advocates of the proposed act say that it could increase the number of qualified veterinarians and answer the shortages of these professionals that currently exist in rural areas. Presently, there are approximately 500 counties across the country that are home to at least 5,000 farm animals, and have no local veterinarian to care for these creatures.

Ron DeHaven, CEO of the American Veterinary Medical Association, said that passage of the bill could result in “enough additional funds to provide one additional veterinarian for every three veterinarians currently scheduled to receive awards.”