

Submission Number:
Charles Meyer
Applegate Animal Clinic, P.C.
Initiative Name:

Veterinary clients are used to having one stop shopping including filling prescriptions at the veterinary office. Most all clients prefer this method for the primary reason that many medications for pets require quite specific directions for satisfactory usage. In addition more than half of clients require additional help and training to properly administer the medications. Pharmacists are not trained in specific uses of these medication and have no knowledge of how to get an animal to take the prescribed medication. On the infrequent occasion that a pharmacy is necessary due to low availability of a particular medication we ask the client who is their favorite pharmacist and most often for satisfactory results I the veterinarian have to work closely with the pharmacist to acquire the correct formulation that the owner will be able to administer with the correct directions. As simplistic as it may sound the quantity of information necessary for adequate results can rarely be made available on a prescription pad form or even in electronic prescriptions. If a client prefers to use an outside pharmacy for some reason I "always" write a prescription and then work with the pharmacist. Unfortunately mail order pharmacies can't have this intimate relationship with either the client or myself and almost invariably the results are far less that satisfactory. If I do send a client to an outside pharmacy almost without exception they are very disappointed that third party involvement is necessary to heal their beloved pet. In addition pharmacy prices are virtually always more expensive that I sell medications due to the fact that they are used to servicing the human population with third party pay and I keep my medications very modestly priced to help the client and create client loyalty. Requiring veterinarians to write prescriptions for every medication will significantly increase pet health care prices while in my opinion significantly lower the quality of care pets receive and generally upset the pet owning public. I also serve the food animal industry. Part of the reason America has such high quality drug free food is the intimate involvement of the veterinary profession in the prescription medication process. Requiring written separate prescriptions will ultimately increase the cost of quality food to the consuming public. Thank you for your consideration of my comment. Please feel free to contact me for more information if you desire.