Written by Bill Estep of the Herald-Leader
Kentucky is the only state where vets are barred from reporting suspected abuse of an animal to animal control officers or police. The ban “certainly makes Kentucky a dramatic outlier” in the United States, said David Rosengard, a senior staff attorney with the Animal Legal Defense Fund.
There are efforts underway in this year’s legislative session to change that.
The measure that has made the most progress is Senate Bill 21, sponsored by Sen. C.B. Embry Jr., a Republican from Morgantown. It would allow veterinarians to make good-faith reports of suspected abuse of animals under their care and shield the veterinarians from liability. The Senate Agriculture Committee approved the bill Feb. 4.
House Bill 60, with Rep. Regina Huff (R-Williamsburg) as the primary sponsor, would require a vet who suspected abuse of an animal brought in by a client to notify an animal control officer, and would protect the vet from liability for a good-faith report.
HB 108, filed by Rep. Cherlynn Stevenson, a Lexington Democrat, would protect vets from lawsuits and prosecution for making good-faith reports about suspected animal abuse and for providing records and testimony.
However, those bills have been stuck in a House committee since early January with no action.
(Cross-posted via the Kentucky Press News Service. Read the rest of the article at the Herald-Leader.)
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