Typically, I’m crabby about the people who stand outside grocery stores and use high-pressure tactics to collect signatures for each year’s election ballots. I feel skeptical about how they explain the ballot initiatives. I doubt the name of the organization represents what it sounds like it represents. And, often, I vote no on various ballot measures because I don’t understand or trust the real motives. I did, however, recently sign one for 2024 Colorado Ballot Initiative 145 because it offers a possible solution to a few problems in modern veterinary medicine. I signed it even though the dude collecting signatures said something I believe to be 100% false. Gold star to me for not correcting him. It was hot, my recovering fractured ankle (aka FRANKLE) hurt, and he pushed to get me to sign ALL of the ballot initiatives on his clipboard. Here’s why. Scroll all the way down to find out what the dude said that made me roll my eyes.VPA BasicsI’ve written before in more detail about the basics about what a VPA (veterinary professional associate) is. The short version is that it would be a new kind of educational pathway and veterinary career option that sits somewhere between credentialed veterinary technician (CVT, RVT, LVT, etc.) and a veterinarian. Kind of like a physician’s assistant or nurse practitioner in human medicine. Who Wants VPA(s) Approved in Colorado?From what I’ve seen in local Colorado media, the proponents of Ballot Initiative 145 include one of the biggest animal shelters in the state and another group called the Vet Care Coalition. In addition, Colorado State University is poised to build out and get accreditation for a master’s degree for VPA(s). Here’s how the text of the actual initiative starts > P.S. I also loathe that ballot initiatives get published in ALL CAPS. It makes it almost impossible to read (and understand), and I always feel like that’s the point … like they’re actually sneaking something in there and making it hard to find. What Problems May VPA(s) Address in Veterinary Care?I’m really boiling things down here, but essentially the goals of an effort to create a VPA role for veterinary professionals include the following:Increasing access to veterinary care, especially in underserved areas and for those facing systemic barriersPotentially lowering costs for routine veterinary care (ask me sometime about that recent $130 routine urinalysis)Giving people interested in veterinary careers or those seeking a new pathway another optionSo, Who Opposes the VPA Initiative in Colorado?Maybe not surprisingly the Colorado Veterinary Medical Association opposes Colorado Ballot Initiative 145. <<< Their position statement outlines several barriers that make creating a VPN education and licensing system difficult. Will Colorado’s VPA Ballot Initiative 145 Pass?I predict it will. Stay tuned. And, if it happens here in Colorado, then you might see VPA jobs near you in the future, but probably not for a while because it will take time to create, accredit, graduate, and license the first class of VPA students.And, finally … what did the clipboard dude say?When trying to explain the VPA ballot initiative to me, he claimed that VPA roles already exist in other states. With close to 30 years working as a professional journalist in the pet / veterinary space, I do not believe that’s true. I think he is completely full of beans as we say around my house, but I was hot and tired and sore, and I just wanted to go home … so I didn’t Rox-splain to him the reality.