MISSOURI Rabies Bill SB 566 ACTION ALERT
MISSOURI: A rabies bill, SB 566 http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/pdf-bil ... /SB566.pdf , has been introduced into the Missouri legislature and assigned to the Agriculture, Food Production & Outdoor Resources Committee. The Rabies Challenge Fund has written the letter below requesting that a medical exemption clause be inserted into this bill. What You Can Do If you are a Missouri resident, please contact the bill sponsor, Senator Dan Brown, and the Chair of the Agriculture Committee below & ask them to place a medical exemption clause into the language of the bill and to vote that the bill "ought to pass." Request that all of the Missouri pet owners you know to do the same. Senator Dan Brown (573) 751-5713 Dan.Brown@senate.mo.gov Senator Brian Munzlinger, Chair of the Agriculture Committee (573) 751-7985 Brian.Munzlinger@senate.mo.gov PERMISSION GRANTED TO CROSS-POST January 14, 20012 Senator Dan Brown Senator Brian Munzlinger RE: SB 566 Bill Requiring Dogs and Cats to be Vaccinated Against Rabies Greetings Senators Brown and Munzlinger: The Rabies Challenge Fund supports passage of the proposed language in SB 566 which would amend Section A, Chapter 322 RSMo, Subsection 322.035 (5) to require that dogs and cats be immunized against rabies in accordance with the current recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) National Association of State Public Health Veterinarian’s (NASPHV) Rabies Compendium. Also in accordance with the Rabies Compendium, we strongly urge the Committee to insert a rabies medical exemption clause into the language of this bill. The Rabies Compendium directs that “All vaccinesmust be administered in accordance with the specifications of the product label or package insert,” and rabies vaccine labels specify that they are for healthy animals. In addition to limiting its rabies vaccine for use in healthy animals, Pfizer’s Defensor 3 label cautions that: “(a) protective immune response may not be elicited if animals are incubating an infectious disease, are malnourished or parasitized, are stressed due to shipment or environmental conditions, are otherwise immunocompromised..” The states of Alabama, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Virginia, and Wisconsin all have medical exemption clauses for sick animals in their rabies immunization laws/regulations. Immunologically, the rabies vaccine is the most potent of the veterinary vaccines and associated with significant adverse reactions such as polyneuropathy “resulting in muscular atrophy, inhibition or interruption of neuronal control of tissue and organ function, incoordination, and weakness,”[1] auto-immune hemolytic anemia,[2] thrombocytopenia, anorexia, regional lymphadenomegaly, cutaneous ischemic vasculopathy;[3] autoimmune diseases affecting the thyroid, joints, blood, eyes, skin, kidney, liver, bowel and central nervous system; anaphylactic shock; aggression; seizures; epilepsy; and fibrosarcomas at injection sites are all linked to the rabies vaccine.[4] [5] It is medically unsound for this vaccine to be given to any animal deemed unhealthy by a veterinarian. A medical exemption clause would allow Missouri veterinarians to write waivers for animals whose medical conditions (such as those with cancer, kidney/liver failure, hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, grand mal seizures, and chronic autoimmune disorders) would be exacerbated by rabies vaccination. The State of Maine inserted such an exemption for dogs into their 3 year rabies protocol, 7 M.R.S.A., Sec. 3922(3), which became effective in April 2005, and not one rabid dog has been reported in the nearly 7 years since. Maine’s exemption language is as follows: A. A letter of exemption from vaccination may be submitted for licensure, if a medical reason exists that precludes the vaccination of the dog. Qualifying letters must be in the form of a written statement, signed by a licensed veterinarian, that includes a description of the dog, and the medical reason that precludes vaccination. If the medical reason is temporary, the letter shall indicate a time of expiration of the exemption. B. A dog exempted under the provisions of paragraph 5 A, above, shall be considered unvaccinated, for the purposes of 10-144 C.M.R. Ch.251, Section 7(B)(1), (Rules Governing Rabies Management) in the case of said dog’s exposure to a confirmed or suspect rabid animal. Without a provision for medical exemptions in Section A, Chapter 322 RSMo, Missouri’s rabies immunization requirement would thrust an ethical quandary on veterinarians with seriously ill patients -- they must either violate their Veterinarian’s Oath and administer a rabies vaccine contrary to sound medical practice and against the vaccine manufacturer’s labeled instructions, or recommend their clients break the law by not immunizing their unhealthy pets against rabies. Being compelled by law to vaccinate sick dogs and cats against rabies in order for their clients to comply with the statute also puts Missouri’s veterinarians at risk of being held liable for any adverse reactions the animals may suffer after administering a vaccine inconsistently with the labeled directions. Owners of critically ill dogs may choose not to comply with the law rather than jeopardize the lives of their pets and then fail to license their dogs to avoid detection. On behalf of The Rabies Challenge Fund Charitable Trust and Missouri pet owners, we urge you to insert a medical exemption clause in Senate Bill 566 and to vote that the bill ought to pass. You may contact me at the number below if you would like any scientific data on the rabies vaccine or if you have any questions. Sincerely, Kris L. Christine Founder, Co-Trustee THE RABIES CHALLENGE FUND http://www.RabiesChallengeFund.org ledgespring@lincoln.midcoast.com cc: Dr. W. Jean Dodds Dr. Ronald Schultz Missouri Legislature & Agriculture Committee -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] Dodds, W. Jean Vaccination Protocols for Dogs Predisposed to Vaccine Reactions, The Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, May/June 2001, Vol. 37, pp. 211-214 [2] Duval D., Giger U.Vaccine-Associated Immune-Mediated Hemolytic Anemia in the Dog, Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 1996; 10:290-295 [3] American Animal Hospital Association, 2011 Canine Vaccination Guidelines, p. 20 [4] American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) Executive Board, April 2001, Principles of Vaccination, Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Volume 219, No. 5, September 1, 2001. [5] Vascelleri, M. Fibrosarcomas at Presumed Sites of Injection in Dogs: Characteristics and Comparison with Non-vaccination Site Fibrosarcomas and Feline Post-vaccinal Fibrosarcomas; Journal of Veterinary Medicine, Series A August 2003, vol. 50, no. 6, pp. 286-291. |
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| MISSOURI MEDICAL EXEMPTION SB 566 ACTION ALERT: A medical exemption clause was included in SB 566 after The Rabies Challenge Fund petitioned the bill's sponsors. Bill SB 566 was read for the 2nd time in the Missouri House on 4/10/12 http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/BTS_Web ... illID=5884. What You Can Do: Please contact your legislators (http://www.senate.mo.gov/llookup/leg_lookup.aspx) & ask them to pass the bill. Text of SB 566 http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/pdf-bill/perf/SB566.pdf including exemption: (5) "Statement of exemption from vaccination," a written determination, signed by a veterinarian, that a medical reason exists that precludes the vaccination for the dog or cat. The statement shall include the owner's name and address, a description of the animal, the medical reason that precludes vaccination, the date of determination, and the period of time for which the medical condition is reasonably expected to persist." PERMISSION GRANTED TO CROSS-POST |
| MISSOURI Rabies Medical Exemption SB 566 PASSED 5/17/12, effective date 8/28/12 http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/BTS_Web ... illID=5884 . Missouri has become the 16th state with a medical exemption clause in its law. Exemption language: Chapter 322, RSMo Section 322.005: (5) "Statement of exemption from vaccination", a written determination, signed by a veterinarian, that a medical reason exists that precludes the vaccination of the dog or cat. The statement shall include the owner's name and address, a description of the animal, the medical reason that precludes vaccination, the date of determination, and the period of time for which the medical condition is reasonably expected to persist; 3. It shall not be considered a violation of this section for an owner to have a dog or cat that is not vaccinated for rabies if such owner possesses a current statement of exemption from vaccination for such animal, however if exposure occurs, the dog or cat is considered to be nonvaccinated. |
| CORRECTION MISSOURI: The medical exemption clause in SB 566 was removed from the version of the bill which passed on 5/17/12. The "Truly Agreed To and Finally Passed" version of SB 566 which did pass http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/pdf-bill/tat/SB566.pdf was not posted on the Legislature's website until a week after passage, leading to the incorrect conclusion that the "Perfected" bill text appearing on the Legislature's bill status including waivers http://www.senate.mo.gov/12info/pdf-bill/perf/SB566.pdf had passed. This version of the bill including rabies waivers did not, in fact, pass. According to the Missouri Department of Agriculture's Legislative Liason, Rachel Mobley, the final version of SB 566 stripped the language which required all dogs and cats to be vaccinated against rabies. Because there is no statutory requirement for rabies vaccination in the final bill or in state law, there was no need for a medical exemption clause in SB 566. Rabies vaccination requirements are determined at the county level. |
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