Advocacy group sues for access toVA’s records on dog testing
Research at Cleveland facility under scrutiny.
An advocacy group that haswagedabattle against the U.S. Department ofVeterans Affairs to stop experimenting on dogs at its hospitals is suing the federal government over a public-records request for documents pertaining to the Louis Stokes ClevelandVAMedicalCenter.
TheWhiteCoatWasteProject filed a lawsuit Wednesday in federal court inWashington, D.C. that says the VA is withholding information about the protocols it follows during animal research.
The organization requested the documents through two Freedom of Information Act requests this year and says the VA either denied their requests or providedheavily redacted documents.
It is asking a federal judge to force the VA to produce the requested information and to declare VA in violation of federal public-records laws.
TheWhiteCoatWasteProject opposes animal experimentation on both ethical and financial grounds, arguing that the practice is opposed by most Americans and awaste of taxpayer money.
The group has said the ClevelandVAhas spentmore than $23,000in the past two years to purchase 18 “mongrels” from laboratory suppliers for research.
It erected a billboard at East 89th Street and Hough Avenue in April that shows dogs behind bars, with the caption “Prisoners ofWaste, Stokes VA Medical Center, Stop Taxpayer-Funded Animal Experiments!”
Concern on such animal experimentswas expressed by Congress aswell. In July, a bipartisan group of Congress members led by Virginia Republican David Brat put language into a spending bill to block the VA from spending money on “painful” experiments on dogs.
Medical organizations disagree that it’s unnecessary to test on dogs, and have lobbied Congress overturn the provision.
White CoatWaste Project President Anthony Bellotti said in a statement that “the ClevelandVAhas continually misled the public about its wasteful and deadly experiments on young, friendly dogs and taxpayers have a right to know the truth about what senseless dog abuses we’re being forced to pay for.”
Theorganization also sued over records at theVA’s medical center in Richmond, Virginia.
A statement fromthe VA’s chief medical officer characterized the lawsuit as “a desperatemove froman animal rights extremist group that doesn’t have Veterans’ best interests at heart.” Dr. Michael Fallon said in the statement that the reasearch has the support of groups that represent veterans.
“VA animal research has saved lives in the past and it will do so in the future, unless extremist groups succeed in shutting it down.” Fallon’s statement says.