The 220-square mile county has 14,000 people and just one veterinarian — Bogan, who has been trying to retire for years. Bogan and a group of community leaders have been working together to try to find another veterinarian to care for the animals, which include everything from cattle and horses to dogs and cats.

In addition to Bogan's practice, Faribault County is trying to make the job even bette. The county is enrolled in a federal program that forgives up to $150,000 in student loans for vets who work in the county for six years.

Still, not one person has come forward to take the deal. The issue facing Faribault County is not unusual, as large portions of rural United States are in a veterinary shortage. More lucrative clinics in urban and suburban areas with regular shifts and no emergency duty are a siren song to many graduating vets, many of whom don't want to launch their own small business right away.

Having no veterinarian in the county during emergencies, like a cow in distress during calving, can hurt the bottom line for farmers in the area whose livelihood depends on their animals. Currently, the county is hopeful that Leyton Becker, who has recently finished his first year of vet school at the University of Minnesota, will come home to help. Becker is currently interning with Bogan.

Becker is from the area and was raised on a hog farm, so he understands the pressures of the job and what it entails. When Becker graduates, Bogan will be 77.

Read more at Kare11.

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Proposed by Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) and Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), the bill expands the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP), which repays up to $25,000 a year in student loans in exchange for at least three years of work in an area experiencing a veterinary shortage.

Vet school typically costs between $200,000 and $275,000; the 2.6 percent increase in student debt in 2020 meant a vet school graduate carried an average of $188,000 in student loans. While the VMLRP offers veterinarians debt relief assistance, current funding is taxed by the federal government at 37 percent.

This rate limits the program benefits, the sponsors say. The proposed bill would end federal tax withholding, providing more financial assistance to new veterinarians and encouraging their involvement in communities that need their service. 

Read more at Capital Press. 

The post Proposed Bill Would Reduce Rural Vet Shortage By Alleviating Student Debt appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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