Occasionally, a profession gets an opportunity to see itself more clearly. The United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority has given veterinary medicine such a moment. The provisional findings from a multiyear CMA investigation into the UK veterinary services market were not written for North America, but they could not be more relevant to the North American veterinary landscape.
The CMA’s review was not a critique of veterinarians. Instead, it reflected the pressures shaping modern veterinary practice: rising costs, rapid consolidation, increasingly informed pet owners, and professional systems that have not evolved at the pace of our scientific and clinical progress. If anything, the report offered a preview of conversations that are almost certainly coming to North America.
What the CMA Found
The CMA launched its inquiry after UK veterinary costs rose by 63% from 2016 to 2023, far outpacing inflation. Questions emerged about whether consolidation might be influencing prices, choice, quality, and transparency.
The findings revealed a profession under strain but not broken. Many well-run practices — corporate and independent — already uphold strong communication and quality standards. Yet, these systemic issues emerged:
- Prices for common services were often not published online.
- Clients frequently did not know who owned the practice they visited.
- Written estimates for high-cost treatments were inconsistently provided.
- Prices varied dramatically between practices and without clear quality signals.
- Some policies on referrals, prescriptions, and product sales created potential conflicts between business incentives and medical judgment.
Crucially, the CMA did not call for price controls. Instead, it recommended simple, implementable measures to strengthen transparency, empower consumers, and reinforce clinical independence.
Why It Matters Here
Closer to home, veterinary medicine is feeling many of the same pressures, but without a unified regulatory lens. Oversight in North America focuses primarily on individual veterinarians rather than the businesses that shape the working environment. And while most practitioners already provide estimates, itemized invoices, and thoughtful communication, the CMA highlighted something deeper: Radical transparency is quickly becoming an expectation, not an optional courtesy.
Today’s pet owners arrive with unprecedented access to information and a powerful emotional bond with their animals. They crave clarity around the “why” behind recommendations and the origin of the costs. Meeting that expectation reinforces clinical autonomy.
It is natural for any profession to bristle at outside scrutiny. But viewed through the proper lens, the CMA’s recommendations reflect the best of what veterinarians already strive to do: Communicate clearly, make decisions in the patient’s interest, and build trust through transparency.
What the CMA is calling for is a cultural reset, one that aligns veterinary practice with modern consumer expectations while protecting clinical freedom. Many of the proposals are not revolutionary. For example:
- Publish the prices of common services.
- Offer written estimates for higher-cost treatments.
- Provide itemized invoices.
- Proactively offer written prescriptions.
- Be transparent about ownership.
- Maintain a structured internal complaint process.
- Share high-level client satisfaction scores.
These are the kinds of measures that strengthen relationships. They create informed clients, reduce misunderstandings, and provide context against the distortion of online reviews. They also ensure that associate veterinarians, who often have little control over pricing or policy, are supported by business structures that share responsibility for transparency and ethical conduct.
A Missing Piece
One forward-looking element of the CMA’s decision is recognition that veterinary businesses, not just individual practitioners, must be accountable for governance, transparency, and ethics.
For North America, such a shift would be significant. Associate veterinarians deliver care but often do not control the systems in which they practice. A framework that evaluates the business environment surrounding veterinarians could create a more balanced, fair, and support-oriented ecosystem, especially as consolidation accelerates.
Imagine a future where hospitals are recognized not only for clinical excellence but also for transparency, communication, and accountability. That is not an intrusion into veterinary autonomy; it is an evolution of it.
A Call to Lead
The CMA’s investigation is not a threat to North America. It is a roadmap. We do not need a formal inquiry to adopt the spirit of these changes. We can choose transparency because it strengthens our profession, not because someone mandates it.
Veterinary medicine is at its best when it leads with clarity, integrity, and partnership. If we embrace transparency as a strategic advantage rather than a compliance exercise, we position ourselves to thrive in an industry that is evolving quickly and ensure that trust remains our profession’s most reliable currency.
THE BVA’S REACTION
British Veterinary Association President Dr. Elizabeth Mullineaux said this about the Competition and Markets Authority report: “We have serious concerns that the proposed remedies are completely disproportionate and, in some cases, simply unworkable. If all the measures were implemented at the same time, the sheer volume and complexity would place an unacceptable burden on vet practices and could jeopardize the viability of many businesses, particularly smaller independent practices.”