{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://ross.house.gov/2024/9/congresswomen-ross-tenney-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-support-pet-owners-by-making-veterinary-care-more-affordable", "Congresswomen Ross, Tenney Introduce Bipartisan Legislation to Support Pet Owners by Making Veterinary Care More Affordable", "2024-09-10", "2024", "2024-09", "Democrat", "House", "NC", "Deborah K. Ross", "R000305", "ross.house.gov", "ross", "https://ross.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "Today, Congresswomen Deborah Ross (NC-02) and Claudia Tenney (NY-24) introduced the People and Animals Well-being (PAW) Act to expand eligibility to include veterinary care expenses under tax-advantaged health care spending accounts, specifically Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs). Additionally, the legislation supports veterans and people living with disabilities by imposing no limit on veterinary care expenses for service animals and by ensuring that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) relies on an up-to-date federal definition of \u201cservice animal\u201d for HSA and FSA expenses, which includes animals trained to assist with both physical and mental disabilities.\n\nAccording to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost of urban veterinary services increased by nearly 60% over the last decade and rose by 7.9% between February 2023 and February 2024. By allowing pet owners to use their HSA or FSA accounts to pay for up to $1,000 for veterinary care or a pet health insurance plan, the PAW Act will make care more affordable and reduce the financial burden on families and veterans.\n\n\u201cPets are more than just animals \u2013 they\u2019re beloved members of families who bring joy, comfort, and even health benefits into our lives,\u201d said Congresswoman Ross. \u201cHowever, rising veterinary costs often make it challenging for families and veterans to provide care for their pets or service animals. As a dog owner, I\u2019m proud to introduce the bipartisan PAW Act, which will include veterinary care and pet insurance as eligible expenses under HSAs and FSAs to help ensure every animal lover can afford care for their pets. I\u2019m grateful for the partnership of Congresswoman Tenney and will keep working to see this bill signed into law.\u201d\n\n\"Our pets and service animals are cherished members of our families, and it's essential that owners have the ability to pay for quality care,\u201d said Congresswoman Tenney. \u201cThe PAW Act offers greater flexibility to pet owners by allowing them to use HSAs and FSAs for pet care expenses. This legislation will help veterans, and all pet owners afford veterinary care for their beloved pets and service animals.\"\n\n\u201cMetLife strongly supports the PAW Act, which helps pet parents address unexpected veterinary expenses resulting from a pet\u2019s illness or accident,\u201d said Brian Jorgensen, Head of Pet Insurance, MetLife. \u201cThis bill is a critical step towards promoting the health and well-being of pets by helping pet parents access the care their pets need while protecting their financial wellness. We are proud to support a bill that aligns with MetLife\u2019s purpose of helping people care for their loved ones, both human and animal.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe AVMA-endorsed People and Animals Well-being (PAW) Act helps maintain animal and human health, promotes and emphasizes the health benefits of pet ownership, and allows more people to become pet owners,\u201d said Dr. Sandra Faeh, President of the American Veterinary Medical Association. \u201cEnsuring veterinary care and pet health insurance are eligible expenses under Health Savings and Flexible Spending Accounts means more affordable care for pets, greater access to care for service animals, and an enhanced ability to detect and prevent zoonotic diseases. We thank Reps. Tenney and Ross for their leadership on this issue and urge Congress to promptly pass the PAW Act.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe salute Representatives Claudia Tenney and Deborah Ross for their leadership in introducing common-sense legislation to make veterinary care more affordable for millions of pet owners,\u201d said Steven Feldman, President of the Human Animal Bond Research Institute. \u201cRepresentatives Tenney and Ross are champions of the human-animal bond, recognizing that pets and service animals positively contribute to the health and wellbeing of American families.\u201d", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T21:43:57Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://ross.house.gov/2024/9/congresswomen-ross-tenney-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-support-pet-owners-by-making-veterinary-care-more-affordable"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5350598841905594, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}