Vets concerned about turning over records on rabies vaccinations
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Here’s a privacy issue that hadn’t occurred to us before we read about it in the San Jose Mercury News:
A new policy aimed at controlling rabies and raising more money for San Jose Animal Care and Service is drawing fire from veterinarians because it will force them to turn over the names and addresses of clients who get rabies shots for their pets. City officials hope to use the information to get more pets registered, but several vets said they fear the new policy will keep pet owners - especially those with more than the legal limit - from getting rabies shots for their cats and dogs. The city’s concern ‘is revenue, our concern is privacy,’ said Walter Hoge, owner of Camden Pet Hospital on Camden Avenue. ‘And if they start doing this, people will not get their pets vaccinated because they won’t want to deal with privacy concerns.’ The new policy, set to go into effect July 1, requires that all veterinarians who practice in San Jose provide to San Jose Animal Care and Service the pet owner’s name, address and phone number, in addition to information about the pet and the date of the rabies vaccination.