163.3A Veterinary emergency preparedness and response.

1. The department may provide veterinary emergency preparedness and response services necessary to prevent or control a serious threat to the public health, public safety, or the state’s economy caused by the transmission of disease among livestock as defined in section 717.1 or agricultural animals as defined in section 717A.1. The services may include measures necessary to ensure that all such animals carrying disease are properly identified, segregated, treated, or destroyed as provided in this Code.

2. The services shall be performed under the direction of the department and may be part of measures authorized by the governor under a declaration or proclamation issued pursuant to chapter 29C. In such case, the department shall cooperate with the Iowa department of public health under chapter 135, and the department of homeland security and emergency management, and local emergency management agencies as provided in chapter 29C.

3. The secretary or the secretary’s designee shall appoint veterinarians licensed pursuant to chapter 169 or persons in related professions or occupations who are qualified, as determined by the secretary, to serve on a voluntary basis as members of one or more veterinary emergency response teams. The secretary shall provide for the registration of persons as part of the appointment process. The secretary may cooperate with the Iowa board of veterinary medicine in implementing this section.

4. a. A registered member of an emergency response team who acts under the authority of the secretary shall be considered an employee of the state for purposes of defending a claim on account of damage to or loss of property or on account of personal injury or death under chapter 669. The registered member shall be afforded protection under section 669.21. The registered member shall also be considered an employee of the state for purposes of disability, workers’ compensation, and death benefits under chapter 85.

b. The department shall provide and update a list of the registered members of each emergency response team, including the members’ names and identifying information, to the department of administrative services. Upon notification of a compensable loss suffered by a registered member, the department of administrative services shall seek authorization from the executive council to pay as an expense from the appropriations addressed in section 7D.29 those costs associated with covered benefits.

2005 Acts, ch 151, §2; 2011 Acts, ch 131, §27, 158; 2013 Acts, ch 29, §47

Referred to in §163.3, 163.3C