Utah livestock owners are encouraged to help protect animal health by registering their premises as part of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS). The voluntary program is needed to help protect American animal agriculture from the intentional or accidental introduction of a foreign or domestic disease.

"Utah is joining numerous states across the country in the creation of an important tracking system that can speed up the identification and control of any serious animal disease in our state," said Dr. Michael R. Marshall, State Veterinarian. "I encourage owners of cattle, sheep, swine, and other livestock to fill out the Premises Registration Form that is now available and return it to our office," he added.

Dr. Marshall emphasizes that the program will be administered by the same Utah Animal Industry employees that livestock owners have come to know and trust, and that no personal or financial information will be gathered in the Premises Identification process.

Premises Registration Forms are available at the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) (801) 538-7166 or on the Internet at: http://ag.utah.gov/animind/Utah_NAIS.html.

NAIS is a voluntary national program from USDA that is intended to identify all agricultural animals and track them as they come into contact with, or are inter-mixed with, animals other than herdmates from their premises of origin.

Already, many species in U.S. animal industries can be identified through some sort of identification system, but these systems are not consistent across the country. The NAIS program will eventually replace the sheep identification system that is currently in use in the United States.

Finding potentially sick or exposed animals early in a disease outbreak is essential to containing or eradicating the disease quickly. The NAIS would allow for rapid tracing of animals in the event of an outbreak, helping to limit the scope and expense of the outbreak and allowing us to minimize impact on domestic and foreign markets.

The UDAF has anticipated the start up of the program and is currently one of only 17 states prepared to issue premises identification numbers. The program is currently operating under a federal grant making the system free to the public. It is uncertain how long such grants will be available to the UDAF and how long the program will remain free to the public.

8:21:13 AM    

(Salt Lake City, UT) - The Utah Department of Health (UDOH) has loosened flu vaccine restrictions enabling adults 50-64 years of age and providers of essential community services, such as police officers, firefighters, EMTs and teachers to get the flu shot.

UDOH is expanding its recommendations to include these other traditional high-risk or priority groups who have not yet been eligible to get vaccinated this flu season. UDOH strongly encourages high-risk individuals in any of the priority groups to get vaccinated now, even if they feel healthy. After Thanksgiving, UDOH plans to remove these restrictions and make the remaining vaccine available for anybody who wants it.

Health officials have eased vaccine restrictions because most of the highest risk groups have had a chance to be vaccinated and more vaccine may be on the way. UDOH recently learned that partially filled vaccine orders in October may soon be completed making more flu shots available. UDOH wants to make sure that the available vaccine supply is used to protect as many people as possible and doesn’t go unused.

The updated priority groups include:

• adults 50-64 years of age (new)
• providers of essential community services, such as police officers, firefighters, EMTs and teachers (new)
• caregivers of those with chronic illnesses, such as cancer or severely weakened immune systems
• children 6 months to 23 months of age
• adults 65 years of age and older
• persons 2 years to 64 years with chronic medical conditions
• all women who will be pregnant during influenza season
• residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities
• children 6 months to 18 years of age on long-term aspirin therapy
• health care workers providing direct patient care
• out-of-home caregivers and household contacts of children less than 6 months of age.

UDOH is grateful to all the health care providers and individuals who have helped make sure that the limited available vaccine gets to those who need it most.

For more information about influenza vaccinations, contact your health care provider, local health department, or the Immunization Hotline at 1-800-275-0659. Physicians wanting additional information on vaccine resources may contact the Utah Immunization Program at 801-538-9450.

8:18:37 AM    

Gov. Olene S. Walker, through executive order, has created a task force to evaluate financing options for future state water projects. The Water Delivery Financing Task Force is specifically charged with evaluating proposals for the Lake Powell Pipeline and a water delivery system for the Bear River. The task force will report its findings to the governor by July 1, 2005.

"The future of Utah will depend on its water supply," said Walker. "The reality is that the demand for water in some growing areas of the state could exceed the supply within the next 20 to 25 years. Because projects of this nature take substantial planning and time, we must begin the process now."

The task force will consider financing options that:

• take into account all reasonable revenue sources and financing, including bonding;
• specify responsibility for payment, with users bearing the ultimate responsibility for payment;
• provide for repayment to the state of any funds loaned or otherwise fronted for the projects; and
• maintain the state’s AAA bond rating.

Members of the task force include: State Treasurer Ed Alter, Chair; Richard Ellis; Larry Anderson; Sen. Tom Hatch; Sen. Bill Hickman; Rep. Stuart Adams; Rep. LaWanna "Lou" Shurtliff; Rep. Ron Bigelow; Rep. David Clark; Rep. Mike Noel; Tage Flint, Weber Basin Water District; Dave Ovard, Jordan Valley Water District; Ron Thompson, Washington County Water District; Carl Empey; and Ivan Flint.

The task force will hold its first meeting at 1 p.m. on Nov. 22, 2004 in the Governor’s Boardroom, 2nd Floor, East Building, Utah State Capitol Complex.

A copy of the executive order may be viewed at http://execdocnews.utah.gov.

8:15:31 AM