Class action lawsuit alleges Veterinary Internship and Residency Matching Program violates anti-trust laws: What former participants say

A class action lawsuit filed in April of this year alleges that the Veterinary Internship and Residency Matching Program (VIRMP) violates the Sherman Antitrust Act, restricting competition for veterinary interns and residents.  

The lawsuit alleges groups like the American Association of Veterinary Clinicians (AAVC), Solution Innovations, VCA Animal Hospitals, BluePearl, and multiple others conspired to limit that competition.  

About the class action lawsuit 

The two veterinary interns who filed on behalf of themselves, Riley Amore, DVM, and Caroline Parker, DVM, also filed on behalf of more than “5,000” other individuals in the same situation, according to the lawsuit. They allege that the VIRMP negatively impacts the ability of interns and residents to negotiate wages, also alleging that the defendants exchanged compensation data.  

The class action lawsuit also cites an AVMA report from this year. That report highlights that while the average starting salary for those veterinary graduates who found full-time employment is $106,963, the internship stipends are nearly half that, averaging around $56,705, despite both groups having the same experience and qualifications.  

The lawsuit goes on to read that “non-intern and non-resident veterinarians in their first year of employment are often additionally able to negotiate sign-on bonuses in the tens of thousands of dollars.” 

The lawsuit also highlights the number of internship and residency positions offered through VIRMP. According to the lawsuit, between 70%-75% of all the available internship and residency positions were offered exclusively through VIRMP.  

Feedback from former VIRMP participants 

We spoke with a few internship- and residency- trained veterinarians to understand their experience with the VIRMP. While they all said the process was transparent and they knew what they were getting into, they all acknowledged the low pay associated with internship and residency training programs.  

 A board-certified large animal internal medicine specialist (DACVIM-LA) who requested to remain anonymous commented that while she felt “lucky” to obtain a residency as an international student and receive a master’s degree free of charge, she would have been “cheap labor” even at double the salary she was paid. “I got good mentorship and good caseload, and don’t regret it. But I also worked 80-100 hour weeks between patients, teaching, research, boards prep, masters study, while being paid $30,000.”  

She said she knew once she matched, that she had to accept or be excluded from reapply to match “for a number of years.” She also commented that outside of the US, interns and residents are starting to receive better salaries. “I think it’s partly driven by lower applicant numbers- people can’t afford to work for so little.” 

While she holds no ill will against the VIRMP, she said she would like to see participants have an opportunity to report on the quality of the training they received. “VIRMP takes no responsibility for the quality of the training program despite locking you into it once matched,” she said.  

Alessandra Hamlin, DVM, DACVR, completed a small animal rotating internship, a diagnostic imaging specialty internship, and a diagnostic imaging residency. The specialty internship was outside of VIRMP, but the other rotating internship and residency were within the VIRMP. She said that while applying was straightforward and she knew what to expect, she knew that once she matched, she would be required to accept the position she was offered.  

Hamlin “absolutely” did not feel that her salary was reasonable in either her internship or residency for the work she performed and the training she received. She was paid $25,000 per year during her rotating internship for often performing 60-80 hours of work a week in an urban area. During her residency, she was paid $36,000 per year in an area with an “average” cost of living, for 45+ hours of weekly work. She did not receive any additional degrees during her training. 

While Hamlin did not need to transfer between programs during her training, she knows of others who did, and she said it was “challenging”. This is one thing she would like to see change. “If an intern or resident makes the decision to leave or transfer out of a program after they have started,” she said, “I don’t think the individual should be excluded from future participation in the VIRMP if there was a valid reason to leave,” citing reasons such as personal hardship, toxic work environment, or the training program not living up to its promises.  

Emily Marcus, DVM, CVA, DABVP (Canine/Feline Practice) completed her internship via the VIRMP. She said she went into the match fully aware of the policies, procedures, and expected salary for what she described as an “educational experience first and foremost.” “It was a rigorous and generally exhausting experience, but a wonderful learning opportunity that I would recommend without reservation,” she said. 

While she acknowledges that the salary was low for the hours she worked, Marcus saw her internship as more of an educational experience than a job. “In 2011, one did not apply to an internship with any aspirations of significant monetary compensation, but for the educational, mentoring and networking opportunities provided through the program,” she said. 

She added she was classified as a student by the university and given access to all the same benefits other students had, including health care and football tickets.  

Marcus said she left her internship with the confidence she needed to handle challenging cases in general practice and emergency settings that she doesn’t believe she would have been able to achieve otherwise in such a short period of time. But she recognizes that, unlike human medical training, pursuing an internship or and/or residency may not be the path other veterinarians choose to take.  “We are lucky as veterinarians to have the option to immediately practice post veterinary school training or participate in advanced training programs through VIRMP.”  

We reached out for comment from the parties representing the plaintiffs and the defendants on 6/3. We will add those comments here if/when we receive them.  

Photo credit: Richard Villalonundefined undefined /iStock via Getty Images 

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