Amendments to the ‘Livestock Medicines Act’ Regulation 730 have been announced. The amendments were filed with the Registrar of Regulations and will take effect on December 1, 2018.
The new regulation can be accessed by clicking here.
Due to concerns with rising antimicrobial resistance, Health Canada is limiting access to medically important antimicrobials for veterinary use. In particular, it moved all medically important antimicrobials to the Prescription Drug List with the intention that they can only be obtained with a prescription from a veterinarian. Health Canada has re categorized roughly 340 veterinary drugs from non-prescription to prescription status. Some of these drugs used to be available at Livestock Medicines Outlets licensed under the Livestock Medicines Act, Regulation 730.
As of December 1, 2018, the federal change will be in effect and Livestock Medicines Outlets will not be able to receive medically important antimicrobials for further sale. To help reduce uncertainty and confusion for livestock stakeholders and Livestock Medicines Outlets, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs has made changes to Regulation 730 under the Livestock Medicines Act to remove medically important antimicrobials from the list of drugs available for sale from provincially licensed Livestock Medicines Outlets.
You can access the final notice on Ontario’s Regulatory Registry by clicking here and searching ‘Antimicrobial Resistance.’
After December 1, 2018, the Livestock Medicines Act will continue to govern a smaller segment of over-the-counter livestock medicines. Given the changes, the ministry will be reviewing the Act’s currency and scope. This is an opportunity to assess the risks and determine the appropriate level of provincial regulatory and inspection oversight of livestock medicines, with a goal of reducing regulatory burden. We will consult with you about any additional changes that may be proposed.
If you have any questions, please contact Jennifer Van Gerwen, Animal Health and Welfare Coordinator at [email protected] or at [email protected].
(With files from OMAFRA)