Horse owners and the EADRA

Dealing with the next horse disease emergency

The successful response to the 2007 equine influenza outbreak clearly demonstrated the value of quick, decisive action during the first few days of a disease incursion. One of the reasons that it worked so well was that there was no need for lengthy argument about who would pay for the response.  This was because the Emergency Animal Disease Response Agreement (EADRA) was triggered.

Under the EADRA, the Australian Government guarantees to underwrite response costs to diseases listed in the EADRA, enabling rapid control and eradication action to proceed immediately. Once the response is completed, the Australian Government recoups part of its expenses from the other government and relevant industry parties to the EADRA.

All the major livestock industries have signed the EADRA which is administered by Animal Health Australia. However to date, no horse owners’ organisation has signed the Agreement. It should be noted that one-third of the 65 diseases presently listed in the EADRA can affect horses, although quite a number also affect other species.

In the 2007 equine influenza outbreak, the Commonwealth carried the industry’s share of the response costs because of the particular circumstances of that incursion. However, Primary Industries Ministers from the Commonwealth and all of Australia’s states and territories have clearly stated that from now on, they won’t support a nationally cost shared response to any exotic horse disease until there is firm commitment to a cost sharing agreement. Ministers have set 1 December 2010 as the deadline for the Australian horse-owning community to reach agreement on a mechanism to allow it to meet its share of response costs.

The purpose of this website is to provide horse organisations and individual owners with a central reference point for authoritative information about the EADRA, possible levy collection options, and progress towards the 1 December deadline.  It should also be a useful place to raise any questions and exchange relevant information about forthcoming meetings, etc.

We hope you will find this a helpful avenue for communication, and encourage you to publicise this link, through your networks.

The key contact person is:

Dr Diane Ryan horse.eadra@industry.nsw.gov.au

Phone: (02) 4640 6378

Dr Mike Bond
Chief Executive Officer, Animal Health Australia

Front page icon courtesy of Kodie Payne and Fenella Bernoth