Introduction
On January 10, 2025, the House of Delegates of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) representing 50 US states, the territory of Puerto Rico, and 18 Allied Organizations voted unanimously to approve a resolution authored by Dr. Scott Dee (Alternate Delegate, MN) and sponsored by the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association entitled “Biosecurity”. Prior to the final vote, it had been approved by the AVMA Office of the Executive Vice President, its Board of Directors, the House Advisory Committee, and Reference Committee 7 (Scientific Activities). Co-sponsors of the resolution included the American Association of Avian Pathologists, the American Association of Industry Veterinarians, the Feline Veterinary Medical Association, the Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association (VMA), the Indiana VMA, the Michigan VMA, the National Association of Federal Veterinarians, the Nebraska VMA, the South Dakota VMA, and the Wisconsin VMA.
Significance
On January 10, 2025, the House of Delegates of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) representing 50 US states, the territory of Puerto Rico, and 18 Allied Organizations voted unanimously to approve a resolution authored by Dr. Scott Dee (Alternate Delegate, MN) and sponsored by the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association entitled “Biosecurity”. Prior to the final vote, it had been approved by the AVMA Office of the Executive Vice President, its Board of Directors, the House Advisory Committee, and Reference Committee 7 (Scientific Activities). Co-sponsors of the resolution included the American Association of Avian Pathologists, the American Association of Industry Veterinarians, the Feline Veterinary Medical Association, the Illinois State Veterinary Medical Association (VMA), the Indiana VMA, the Michigan VMA, the National Association of Federal Veterinarians, the Nebraska VMA, the South Dakota VMA, and the Wisconsin VMA.
Outcome
Approval of the resolution led to an AVMA policy on Biosecurity, as follows:
Diseases of animals can be transmitted in many ways, including direct and indirect oral, airborne, and vector borne routes of transmission.
Because of these many risks, prevention of disease transmission through the practice of biosecurity is critical to protecting the health and welfare of all species.
To be effective, biosecurity programs should be, based on scientific evidence and current best practice(s) as applicable.
The AVMA supports the protection of the health and welfare of animals through the practice of science-based biosecurity and encourages its members to become familiar with this approach.
Conclusions and Next Steps
Since an AVMA policy on biosecurity did not previously exist, this was a logical first step to take. The AVMA is currently developing a web-based biosecurity resource page to provide educational material for its members. The official AVMA news release about this policy and other recent decisions from the House of Delegates January meeting can be accessed at
https://www.avma.org/news/delegates-approve-new-polices-biosecurity-license-endorsement.
As mentioned in the policy, all veterinarians across all species should become familiar with the science of biosecurity, follow an evidence-based approach to practice it in the field, and strive to bring answers to existing questions.
In closing, using scientific information from pivotal publications to write policy for the benefit of the profession is a novel approach when dealing with critical matters that affect animal and human health.
References
1. Dee S, Brands, L, Nerem J, Schelkopf A, Spronk G, Havas K. Improvements in swine herd biosecurity reduce the incidence of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus in swine herds in the Midwestern United States. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 2024. doi.org/10.2460/javma.23.08.04.0437.
2. Dee S, BrandsL, Edler R, SchelkopfA, NeremJ, Spronk G, KikutiM, Corzo CA.. Further evidence that science-based biosecurity provides sustainable prevention of porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus infection and improved productivity in swine breeding herds. Animals, 2024,14,2530.dpi.org/10.3390/ani14172530.
