VET CARE Act
Creates competitive grants for high-school veterinary work-based learning in areas with veterinarian shortages.
In the House Agriculture Committee since Sept. 28, 2026, 7 days after it was introduced. Most bills never leave committee.
- INTRODUCEDINTROSEP 28, 2026
- COMMITTEECOMM.IN COMMITTEE
- HOUSEHOUSE—
- SENATESENATE—
- LAWLAW—
What the bill would do, and why it matters
Veterinary careers include work with animals and related fields such as food safety and diagnostics. The VET CARE Act would create competitive grants for high-school work-based learning programs in areas with veterinarian shortages. It would also require yearly reports from grant recipients and prioritize programs that prepare students for large-animal and food-animal veterinary careers.
- INTRODUCED ONLY This bill has been introduced and possibly referred to a committee, but it has not passed any vote. Most introduced bills never become law — they die in committee without a hearing.
- DATA NOTE No Congressional Research Service summary was available.
- Create veterinary work-based learning grants
The Agriculture Secretary would make competitive grants to eligible entities to create or expand high-school work-based learning programs focused on veterinary medicine in States with a veterinarian shortage situation.
- Prioritize large-animal career pathways
The Secretary would have to prioritize programs that offer substantial experience with livestock, equine animals, or other large animals and create a pathway to further education, training, and long-term work in large-animal or food-animal veterinary medicine. The Secretary could also prioritize grants based on documented shortages, workforce gaps, and State workforce data.
- Support preparation for veterinary careers
Grant funds could support students’ exposure and preparation for careers in settings such as veterinary clinics, animal shelters, schools, colleges, cooperative extension programs, and workforce development boards, as well as fields such as diagnostics, epidemiology, food safety, and animal husbandry.
- Require yearly student outcome reports
For each fiscal year they receive a grant, recipients would report student enrollment, graduation, attendance, truancy, and postsecondary education and workforce outcomes, including participation in large-animal work-based learning.
The bill is aimed at veterinarian shortage situations and identifies rural and food-animal workforce gaps as possible factors in grant priorities. Its approach is to build work-based learning and career pathways for students, with particular emphasis on large-animal experience.
Written from the bill text.
The path it took, step by step
- IntroducedSEP 28, 2026HOUSESEP 28, 2026By Rep. BrownReferred to Agriculture
- SAME DAYNOWHouse committeeSEP 28, 2026AGRICULTURE NOWSEP 28, 2026In committee for 7 daysNo hearing yet
- 7 DAYS SO FARPassed the House—HOUSE FLOOR—Not scheduled
- Senate committee—SENATE—
- Passed the Senate—SENATE FLOOR—Not scheduled
- Resolve differencesONLY IF NEEDEDBOTH CHAMBERSONLY IF NEEDEDSkipped if the other chamber passes the same text
- Signed into law—PRESIDENT—10 days to sign or veto
- SEP 282026SEP 28, 2026REFERREDHOUSEReferred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
- SEP 282026SEP 28, 2026INTRODUCEDHOUSEIntroduced in House
At day 7, this bill is already older than 3% of the laws passed this Congress were when they were signed.
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