The Veterans Administration posted a proposed regulation change on 6/11/2011.
Here is the source Proposed Regulation:
Depending upon your point of view, you may find reasons to post a comment about this proposed regulation change before the 8/15/2011 deadline. I recommend reading the whole document. It contains a number of potential issues for veterans who want to acquire a Service Dog and expect benefits from the VA for its use.
To post a comment about this proposal, you may go to:
Type in “RIN 2900-AN51—Service Dogs" in the search box, and you'll get to a Submit Comment box.
My specific issues with the regulations are:
1. Only Service Dogs that come from ADI accredited programs will be permitted to receive benefits such as veterinary health care for the dog. That means that "owner trained" dogs will be excluded.
2. ADI only permits not-for-profit organizations to become accredited, hence an individual that uses the services of a for-profit professional dog trainer (rather than a not-for-profit corporation) during the owner-training process won't be covered, either.
3. Currently, there are only about 75 ADI accredited organizations in the USA, and seven of those are blind Guide Dog, exclusive. There are no ADI accredited organizations in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Nebraska, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wyoming and the ADI member organization in New Jersey produces Guide Dogs, only. In case you don't want to count them, that's 22 states! Which means, many veterans will have to travel a long distance to acquire a SD for which the VA will pay benefits.
There are a few other issues with the current regulations, too. Let your voice be heard before it's too late.
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