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ST. LOUIS NEWS TODAY - Sunday, April 12, 2009
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Gov. Jay Nixon and Agriculture Director Jon Hagler highlight the administration's successful Operation Bark Alert program during a visit to the Humane Society of Missouri in St. Louis on April 9, 2009. Photo courtesy Governor's Office
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'Operation Bark Alert' Has Rescued More Than 1,300 Dogs This Year
ST. LOUIS, MO, (SLFP.com), April 12, 2009 - Gov. Jay Nixon and First Lady Georganne Nixon visited the Humane Society of Missouri, where dozens of dogs seized through the Missouri Department of Agriculture's 'Operation Bark Alert' now await adoption.
Gov. Nixon toured the facility and spoke with Humane Society staff and members of the public about his administration's efforts to step up enforcement of laws that regulate dog breeders and ensure safe and sanitary conditions for animals.
In remarks, Gov Nixon said, "As a dog lover, I'm proud to say that my administration has made great strides forward in cracking down on unlicensed breeders and others who ignore Missouri's laws. For too long, some bad eggs have sullied the reputation of an entire industry. I'm committed to making sure that we enforce the laws fully so that dogs aren't mistreated and neither are breeders who play by the rules."
Upon taking office, Gov. Nixon asked Director of Agriculture Dr. Jon Hagler to implement a plan for generating greater compliance among the state's pet industry breeders with licensure laws and state regulations and to enhance enforcement efforts against non-compliant breeders. The initiative, named 'Operation Bark Alert', has resulted in the successful rescue of more than 1,300 dogs.
Multiple raids have yielded the surrender of more than 100 dogs each.
"Unlicensed breeders are putting our reputable licensed breeding professionals at a competitive disadvantage and putting the health and safety of animals at risk," said Director Hagler. "As a result of this initiative we are only going to have: exceptional licensed breeders, good licensed breeders striving to become exceptional and those out of business for good."
The Humane Society of Missouri facility visited by Gov. Nixon on Thursday's adoption day is the temporary home of dozens dogs seized during a well-publicized recent raid on an unlicensed breeder in Daviess County. Many of those dogs, now clean and healthy, are available for adoption by the public.
"There are a lot of great dogs here at the Humane Society that need homes. Folks should think about coming down and adopting," added Gov. Nixon.
The Governor and first family are themselves the owners of a six year-old Welsh Springer spaniel named Boone.
Proposed Bill Supports Restricting Off-Label Treatment
ST. LOUIS, MO, (SLFP.com), April 12, 2009 - Attorney General Chris Koster joined with 16 other state Attorneys General in supporting a proposed federal rule to prevent insurance companies from requiring patients to use drugs "off-label."
Off-label treatment occurs when a health plan mandates that patients first try drugs that are not approved by the FDA for the specified diagnosis, before the plan will cover the doctor-prescribed medications. Health care plans do not fall under the strict laws that regulate marketing of drugs for off-label uses.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a rule to stop insurance companies from requiring a patient to first try a drug off-label before it will provide Medicare Part D coverage. The letter from Attorney General Koster and other state Attorneys General to CMS stated that the practice of mandating off-label treatments was "dangerous and should not be permitted."
"Increasingly, I hear from patients who have been denied their medications by third party payors more concerned with profits than patient safety," said Koster. "Patients deserve the care their doctors order, instead of having the insurance company mandate use of a non-FDA approved drug for treatment."
Koster also expressed concern about commercial insurance practices in Missouri that required forced off-label therapy before granting access to doctor-prescribed medications.
"One proposal pending in the Missouri legislature merits the attention of the General Assembly," Koster said. "House Bill 458, sponsored by Representative Bryan Stevenson and put forward by Republican and Democratic leaders, is a serious bi-partisan effort to address transparency in medical care." HB 458 regulates pharmacy benefit managers and requires notice to patients and doctors if any insurer switches prescriptions or treatment.
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