(a) A California veterinary medical school may develop a high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter certification program to be offered as elective coursework to enrolled students. The certification program shall do all of the following: (1) Provide training in techniques to facilitate safe and efficient ovariectomy, ovariohysterectomy, and gonadectomy of cats and dogs. (2) Use and support best practices for high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter procedures and services. (3) Consist of both classroom and surgery lab training. (4) Require students to successfully complete a number of ovariectomies, ovariohysterectomies, and gonadectomies under the high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter model, as determined by the program. (b) If there are program spaces available after students have enrolled, a California veterinary medical school that offers a certification program pursuant to subdivision (a) shall allow California-licensed veterinarians and California-registered veterinary technicians to enroll in the certification program for continuing education and certification purposes. (1) A veterinary medical school that offers a certification program pursuant to this section shall provide a California-licensed veterinarian or California-registered veterinary technician who successfully completes the certification program with a certificate of completion and a written confirmation of the number of hours spent in active high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter practice. (2) A California-licensed veterinarian or California-registered veterinary technician who successfully completes the certification program shall receive continuing education credit for program participation. (3) The curriculum offered to a California-registered veterinary technician pursuant to this subdivision shall be consistent with current law and shall include, among other topics, all of the following: (A) Surgical preparation of the patient. (B) Anesthesia induction and maintenance. (C) Subcutaneous and cutaneous tissue closure. (D) Anesthesia recovery. (E) Emergency and critical care considerations using techniques under the high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter model. (4) A certification program offered pursuant to this subdivision shall require a California-licensed veterinarian to successfully complete a number of ovariectomies, ovariohysterectomies, and gonadectomies under the high-quality, high-volume spay and neuter model, as determined by the program. (5) A certification program offered pursuant to this subdivision may charge a reasonable fee to cover the costs associated with offering the program to a California-licensed veterinarian or a California-registered veterinary technician. A fee charged pursuant to this paragraph shall be paid directly to the veterinary medical school offering the program. (c) A certification program offered pursuant to this section shall do all of the following: (1) Make available to the public low- or no-cost ovariectomies, ovariohysterectomies, or gonadectomies for cats and dogs that are performed by students or California-licensed veterinarians enrolled in the program. (2) Develop policies and procedures that prioritize qualifying for the services described in paragraph (1) based on, at a minimum, income and socioeconomic status. (3) Ensure that the training and care provided or coordinated by the program is at a standard of care that is consistent with those standards of care generally accepted within the veterinary profession. (d) A California veterinary medical school that offers a certification program pursuant to this section shall publicly publish, every three years, a progress report that describes the activities of the program. The progress report shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following information: (1) The number of cat and dog ovariectomies, ovariohysterectomies, and gonadectomies performed under the program. (2) The number of certifications issued by the program. (3) The costs associate
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