The UK's Plan to Rein In Vet Costs

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UK Eyes Veterinary Price Controls & Fee Transparency

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published a working paper after an 18-month probe into the £2 billion UK small-animal vet market. As The Guardian reported this week, potential “remedies” include mandatory online disclosure of treatment and medicine prices, caps on prescription mark-ups, generic-only prescribing rules, and even limits on cremation fees—all aimed at reining in a 60% jump in treatment costs since 2015.

The CMA is also weighing a temporary price “freeze” on veterinary medicines while the broader reforms take effect. Public feedback is open until May 27, with provisional findings due this summer and final decisions by November 2025.

The great team at VIN News also had the story this week, and they highlighted that controlling pricing via medications, especially those sold directly to pet owners by practices, was of particular interest to the CMA. The report outlined potential measures, such as banning clinics from selling certain medications in-house, requiring them instead to issue prescriptions that clients could fill elsewhere — or at minimum, mandating that vets inform pet owners they have that option.

In response, the British Veterinary Association has criticized some of the measures, saying they would undermine veterinarians' ability to do their job and have negative consequences for animal welfare.

In terms of plans, it may not be perfect but this isn’t the worst one we’ve heard come out of the UK. Remember when they considered euthanizing all pet cats to stop the spread of COVID?

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Amazon Launches Prescription Pet Pharmacy

As The Verge reported this week, Amazon has announced an expansion of its prescription medication business to include pet medications. Through a partnership with Vetsource, Amazon now offers a wide range of FDA-approved prescription medications for pets, including treatments for fleas, ticks, and chronic conditions. Pet owners can search for these medications on Amazon, enter their veterinarian’s information at checkout, and have their prescriptions processed by Vetsource. Once approved, orders are shipped within two to six days.

To complete an order, Vetsource contacts the prescribing veterinarian for authorization. Refills typically don’t require further vet input, as long as a valid prescription remains on file. This new service builds on Amazon’s expansion into healthcare, following its 2020 launch of prescription delivery for humans. It's positioned to improve access to essential pet medications, especially for owners with limited access to clinics or pharmacies.

For veterinarians, this shift brings both potential benefits and disruptions. It could increase client convenience and support better adherence to treatment plans. But it also threatens in-house pharmacy revenue and cedes more control of the dispensing process to third-party platforms. Regardless, veterinary teams may need to rethink how they deliver pharmacy services to stay relevant and client-centered in a changing landscape.

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UNAM Vet School Withdraws U.S. Accreditation

The Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)—the oldest vet school in the Western Hemisphere—has voluntarily withdrawn from the AVMA Council on Education (COE) accreditation, effective at the end of 2025. Both VIN and the AVMA covered the story this week.

While UNAM will retain its national accreditation in Mexico, its decision to withdraw from AVMA accreditation may complicate U.S. licensure for future graduates, who will now need to pursue educational equivalency certification. The move comes amid a wider accreditation review by the AVMA Council on Education (COE), which recently placed seven international veterinary schools on continued probation, citing deficiencies in areas like clinical resources, physical infrastructure, and outcome assessments. These schools have two years to address the issues.

The COE also introduced new policy changes that raise the bar for off-campus clinical training oversight. Programs must now provide more robust documentation—detailing student experiences, conducting regular site evaluations, and demonstrating clear oversight of external facilities.

The timing of UNAM’s withdrawal appears closely linked to these developments. The COE approved the school’s request to withdraw just weeks before a scheduled comprehensive site visit to its Mexico City campus.

In an interview with VIN News Service, Dr. Carlos Guillermo Gutiérrez Aguilar—appointed director of the veterinary school in February 2024—confirmed the decision was related to the upcoming visit. “While we had fully prepared and met all requirements, we ultimately chose to withdraw and cancel the site visit,” he said. “Unfortunately, we couldn’t guarantee the right environment for the visit to proceed as intended.”

In a controversial policy shift, the COE has announced it will no longer enforce accreditation standards related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The change was communicated in a letter to veterinary colleges, citing recent federal executive orders as the basis for the decision.

For veterinarians and academic leaders, the implications are significant: fewer international graduates may qualify for U.S. licensure without pursuing additional certification; clinical training programs now face stricter requirements for oversight and documentation; and the removal of DEI standards could shift institutional priorities around policy development, hiring, and student recruitment.

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Quick Hits

Here are some of the other stories that caught our eye and we're following this week from around the veterinary world and animal kingdom: