EPA Wisdom and What We Already Knew

A March 17, 2010 article from DVM Magazine sited the EPA's announcement that new labeling requirements, public education, and increased monitoring for adverse events will become part of the standard regulatory enforcement efforts for new and existing spot-on flea control products.

Hmmmmmm...what the EPA is just now discovering, veterinarians and their support staff knew long ago; the risks of adverse reactions and mishandling would increase when topical flea and tick products went from prescription medications to over-the-counter applications.

We don't like to say, "We told you so", but we did challenge the thought and practice of this when it began.

For years now, the family veterinarian has battled the on-line discount pharmacies and large retail chains where product is sold in mass and margins are low. From the beginning they understood all the possible things that could go wrong when a pet owner, with minimal or no guidance, chooses the wrong product to control fleas and ticks.

When deep pockets and mass marketing push for faster and cheaper we lose the value of the neighborhood veterinarian whose priority lies with their patients and families.

Adverse events and mishandling would decrease significantly if these spot-on products were once again managed through licensed veterinarians, but sadly, they now seem to be falling into a governmental bureaucracy too. However well intentioned our government agencies are, common sense dictates that if placed back into the capable hands of the family veterinarian, all would be well once more.