Many of you have heard me speak of Marcia Rosenberg, who has been fighting
for years to insure that records be made public with regards to Veterinarians
who are reported to the State Veterinary Medical Board -

Background sites:

http://allcarelawsuits.ctyme.com/vetsuspended.htm

http://allcarelawsuits.ctyme.com/secretsystem.htm

http://www.dogsadversereactions.com/newsletter4.html

http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/8814902.htm

Sunday, March 20, 1005 - Charleston Post and Courier - Editorial Section
QUOTE:
printer friendly format sponsored by:
The New Media Department of The Post and Courier

SUNDAY, MARCH 20, 2005 12:00 AM
A citizen's important FOI fight

Instead of enjoying her kayak, a Mount Pleasant housewife spent the
media-designated "Sunshine Sunday" last week reading everything she could find
on
freedom of information. Marcia Rosenberg was, she tells us, trying to gather
more
ammunition to convince state lawmakers to open up records that every pet owner
should have the right to see.

Mrs. Rosenberg has been battling for that access for more than four years.
It's a cause she took up after winning a prolonged fight that resulted in a
Mount Pleasant veterinarian agreeing to close his practice. Her fight began when
her kitten, Pumpkin, nearly died after a routine surgery and was saved by
another vet.

During the complaint process, her outrage was heightened by the state
veterinarian board's closed hearing process, not to mention her inability to
learn
how many other complaints had previously been filed. The more her persistence
gained public notice, the more complaints about the vet came her way and, often
with her assistance, were filed with the board. Ultimately, according to our
July 2004 report, the vet, whose license was suspended for one year in 2002,
agreed to stop practicing in the state.

Fortunately, Mrs. Rosenberg stayed with her mission of trying to ensure that
pet owners have the right to check the vet board's records of complaints.
What's more, she even convinced top veterinarian officials, including the board,
that hers was a reasonable request. Her proposed "sunshine" provision was
included in an updated veterinarian practices act introduced in the Legislature
last year. Unfortunately, according to a June 2004 report in The State
newspaper,
the bill was filibustered by Sen. Danny Verdin of Laurens whose father is a
veterinarian.

But Mrs. Rosenberg has now gained some powerful Senate allies, including
Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell and Berkeley Sen. Larry Grooms, who
is chairman of the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee. Both
know that what she's advocating is consistent with the reform finally adopted in
dealing with complaints against attorneys. The S.C. Press Association is
pressing this year for the same openness for complaints against the medical
profession.

Certainly there are mean-spirited and frivolous complaints against
professionals who are licensed by the state. No one is seriously asking that all
complaints be available for public airing. But those that staff investigators
have
found to warrant further probing should be open for scrutiny, along with the
hearing process. That's an important check on the decisions of the board.

What Mrs. Rosenberg has done, according to Sen. McConnell, is "awaken the
conscience." If, he noted, a profession seeks to be licensed by the state then
it
has chosen to put itself in the public eye. "It's a matter of
accountability," he said. "The public has got a right to see what complaints are
on file on a
particular vet before taking a pet to that vet." That ought to be a
no-brainer.

This article was printed via the web on 3/20/2005 7:21:36 AM . This article
appeared in The Post and Courier and updated online at Charleston.net on
Sunday, March 20, 2005. >>

Congratulations and thanks go to Ms. Rosenberg for her continuing fight - I
am sure her efforts will also have a positive influence in all the states! We
have a right to to view these records. Thanks to Ms. Rosenberg, the day when
we can is fast approaching.

Jean
(Always for George - Always for the Rimadyl Dogs)
http://hometown.aol.com/luswinton/myhomepage/memorial.html
 







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