News Briefs for the Week of January 27, 2003
By Marcella Durand for Cat Facts
- AVMA Ends Support for Feline Sarcoma Task Force
In what may be upsetting news for those who have seen a beloved cat die from a vaccine-associated sarcoma, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has announced that it will no longer be supporting the Vaccine-Associated Feline Sarcoma Task Force, which was created in 1996 to investigate the mysterious, yet undeniable link between fast-spreading cancerous sarcomas in cats and vaccinations.
While the AVMA will no longer provide funds, it will continue to provide staff and meeting support to the task force, and has appointed a liaison representative.
According to a board member of the AVMA, the AVMA is a multi-species organization and, as such, should not continue ongoing funding of a single-species problem. However, others feel that the AVMA should continue their support since, according to the AVMA's Web site, "the problem results from a necessary medical intervention."
The task force has said it will continue its research even without AVMA funding and that it has enough funds for limited research. However, at this date, the problem has not yet been resolved, and task force members are concerned that dissolving the task force could be seen as abandoning the veterinary profession's responsibility for the problem.
- Health Insurance for Union Cats
Cat workers of the world, unite! It looks as if dogs and cats may be making more progress on the health insurance front than we humans are. At the end of November, the Canadian company Pethealth signed an agreement with the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) to become the exclusive indemnity pet insurance provider for the more than 13 million members of labor unions in the United States. "We are always looking to offer working families new benefits," says Leslie Tolf, the president of Union Privilege, "and pet insurance is an exciting new avenue for us, as 59 percent of union households have a pet."
Pethealth is the exclusive pet insurance provider for Petco Animal Supplies, and has also formed what it calls a "strategic alliance" with Petfinder.com, which is one of the largest online adoption agencies for unwanted animals.
For more information about pet insurance benefits for union members, visit www.UnionPlusPets.com.
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