S 620 · Veterinary Services to Improve Public Health in Rural Communities Act
Held at the desk.
- Introduced
- Feb 18, 2025
- Latest action
- Dec 15, 2025
- Sponsor
- Sen. Lisa Murkowski [R-AK]
- Policy area
- Native Americans
- Cosponsors
- 3
Summary
Veterinary Services to Improve Public Health in Rural Communities Act This bill expands support for public health veterinary services (e.g., disease surveillance or vaccination) in tribal communities to address zoonotic infectious diseases (i.e., diseases that spread between humans and animals). Specifically, the bill authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Indian Health Service (IHS), to expend funds for public health veterinary services to prevent and control zoonotic disease infection and transmission in IHS areas where the risk for disease occurrence in humans and wildlife is endemic. HHS may assign or deploy veterinary public health officers from the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commissioned Corps to IHS areas. Additionally, HHS must submit a biennial report to Congress on the use of funds, the assignment and deployment of veterinary public health officers from the USPHS Commissioned Corps, data related to the monitoring and disease surveillance of zoonotic diseases, and related services. The bill also includes the IHS as a coordinating agency in the National One Health Framework. (This framework addresses zoonotic diseases and advances public health preparedness in the United States.) The bill requires the Department of Agriculture to conduct a feasibility study on the delivery of oral rabies vaccines to wildlife reservoir species that are connected to the transmission of rabies to tribal members living in Arctic regions of the United States. The study must (1) evaluate the efficacy of the oral rabies vaccines, and (2) make recommendations to improve the delivery of these vaccines.
Recent actions
- Dec 15, 2025 Held at the desk.
- Dec 15, 2025 Received in the House.
- Dec 15, 2025 Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Dec 11, 2025 Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent. (consideration: CR S8687; text: CR S8687)
- Dec 11, 2025 Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
- Sep 29, 2025 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 174.
- Sep 29, 2025 Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Murkowski without amendment. With written report No. 119-69.
- Sep 29, 2025 Committee on Indian Affairs. Reported by Senator Murkowski without amendment. With written report No. 119-69.
Votes
No recorded votes are available for this bill.