INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — April 17 is the next scheduled quarterly meeting of the Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH), set to begin at 9:30 a.m.

Included in this meeting will be a first reading and consideration of a proposed rule rescinding mandatory reporting of porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV) and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) diagnosis in swine, as well as adoption of a quicker emergency rule to rescind the mandatory requirement.

Denise Derrer, BOAH public information director, said the proposed rule is intended to eliminate mandatory reporting for reporting these viruses at the state level, after the USDA dropped the requirement. “This rule will eliminate this burden on pork producers,” she said.

Because BOAH only meets every three months, a full rule-making cycle can take up to six months, she said, so the emergency rule is mean to “provide relief” more immediately until the regular rule can have a second reading and public hearing, and presumably pass a vote. “We have done this on other rules in the past to fill the gap,” Derrer said.

Also on the agenda is the first reading of a proposed rule concerning meat and poultry sanitation, and the second reading and public hearing of a rule concerning dairy sanitation, which was first proposed at the January meeting. This rule is intended to continue updating state dairy standards under a similar rule BOAH passed two years ago, aligning with federal requirements.

Other regular reports include those from the state veterinarian, individual animal divisions and legal affairs. The meeting will be held in the basement of Discovery Hall on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. For more information, call 317-544-2400 or 877-747-3038.