Disparities in access to life-saving FIP antiviral treatment create welfare inequities that leave many cats to suffer from a now-treatable disease.
FIP treatment access inequity means that the same disease that can now be cured in cats whose owners can afford treatment remains fatal for cats in lower-income households. The welfare implications are stark: identical suffering, identical potential for cure, dramatically different outcomes based on financial circumstance rather than medical indication. Efforts to reduce treatment cost through generic approval, subsidized access programs, and veterinary school treatment funds are directly welfare-relevant. The existence of effective treatment creates a moral obligation to work toward equitable access that did not exist when FIP was universally fatal. Advocacy for regulatory pathways that enable competition and reduce treatment cost serves cat welfare directly.