WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies – released the following statement on the announcement of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Veterinary Services Grant Program (VSGP) awards: 

“I was pleased to see Kansans receive several grants from the USDA Veterinary Services Grant Program, which I made a priority to fund through my role on the Appropriations Committee. Ensuring veterinary services in rural areas is necessary for proper animal care and public safety, and I look forward to seeing the ways these grants work in Kansas to help relieve service shortages.”

Kansas received three VSGP awards:

• FLYIN’3 Veterinary Service, Inc., Eureka: $125,000 to replace equipment and repair building that was hit by an F3 tornado in June 2018.
• Solomon Valley Veterinary Hospital, Beloit: $125,000 to hire two additional vets and purchase mobile equipment that will allow for the expansion of the clinic’s service area. 
• Kansas State University: $111,000 for a summer program for aspiring rural vets.

Additional information regarding the awards:

• Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced 16 Veterinary Service Grants Program (VSGP) awards, nine Education, Extension and Training grants and seven Rural Practice Enhancement grants to help mitigate veterinary service shortages in the United States. This program is designed to support education and extension activities that will enable veterinarians, veterinary students, and veterinary technicians gain specialized skills and practices. The Agricultural Act of 2014 authorized the establishment of the VSGP as a companion to the Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program to incentivize service in veterinarian shortage situations. Ultimately, VSGP will bolster the capacity of private veterinary practitioners to provide food animal veterinary services in rural veterinarian shortage locations.

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