December, 2022 | Horse Racing Free Tips

UK Equine Research Hall Of Fame Inducts Four New Members

Lisa Fortier, Katrin Hinrichs, Jennifer Anne Mumford and Stephen M. Reed are the newest members of an elite group within the University of Kentucky's College of Agriculture, Food and Environment. The UK Equine Research Hall of Fame recently selected the new members for their exceptional contributions to equine research. The four were nominated by their peers and previous award recipients.

“The Gluck Equine Research Foundation is honored to host this long-standing event that celebrates excellence in research,” said Stuart Brown, chairman of the Gluck Equine Research Foundation and Keeneland vice president of Equine Safety.

This prestigious award is an international forum to honor outstanding achievements in equine research and those who have made a lasting tribute benefiting equine health. We thank the equine community for joining us to celebrate these deserving inductees.”

Lisa Fortier spent 30 years developing the fields of equine joint disease, cartilage biology and regenerative medicine. She focused on quickly identifying and treating injuries to prevent long-term damage to the horse's joints and tendons.

One of Fortier's most notable contributions was in regenerative medicine, where she was an early adopter of platelet-rich plasma, bone marrow concentrate and stem cells for use in both equine and human patients. Fortier's lab also helped diagnose cartilage damage and improve clinical orthopedics.

“Lisa is a pioneer in developing and implementing treatments in regenerative medicine in the horse industry,” said nominator Doug Antczak, Dorothy Havemeyer McConville Foundation professor of equine medicine, at the ceremony. “Very, very courageous work; and a lot of it doesn't work out, so there are many negative results. But she's been a courageous researcher in this in this area … she's also been a very talented and outstanding equine orthopedic surgeon in her own right. Lisa has conducted biomedical research across the spectrum of many species not only in the horse, but in other livestock species. She really embodies the concept of medicine.”

Katrin Hinrichs spent her career studying horse reproductive systems and developing methods to aid them in reproducing. Her 40-year research career focused on equine endocrinology, oocyte maturation, fertilization, sperm capacitation and assisted reproduction.

Hinrichs' discoveries led to many basic and applied research advances. She cloned the first North American horse and set the medical standard for intracytoplasmic sperm injection and in vitro horse embryo production. In addition, Hinrichs mentored 85 basic and applied veterinary research students, residents, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows and hosted 50 foreign researchers in her lab throughout her career.

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“Without question, I would have put Katrin on the top of her peers in the international academic community,” wrote one of her nominators Dickson Varner, a 2018 Equine Research Hall of Fame inductee. “She has a keen scientific mind, unrelenting productivity, a sincere interest in developing the next generation of veterinarians and scientists and a level of morality above reproach.”

Jennifer Anne Mumford, a posthumous inductee, was a world-renowned equine infectious diseases researcher, particularly in virus research. Her distinguished career at the Animal Health Trust, Newmarket, United Kingdom, began when she became the first head of the newly established equine virology unit. As the division chief, she focused on leading causes of acute infectious respiratory disease in the horse, primarily equine herpesvirus and equine influenza virus, and to a lesser extent, Streptococcus equi, the causative agent of equine strangles. Mumford made numerous significant contributions in these areas, including developing improved vaccines, diagnostics and international surveillance.

During her career, Mumford also founded immunology and equine genetics groups at the Animal Health Trust, which leads studies in diseases such as equine herpes rhinopneumonitis, equine influenza, Streptococcus and Clostridium.

“Many of her letters of nomination described her as unique, inspirational and ahead of her time for making breaches in the glass ceiling that existed for woman researchers in the late 20th century,” said nominator Tom Chambers, a Gluck Center researcher, at the ceremony. “(She was known as) a tireless promoter of equine infectious disease research, one not afraid of controversy, who frequently challenged dogmatic thinking and could engage in spirited discussions. Her efforts frequently resulted in changes in regulations and approaches based upon the latest scientific developments.”

Stephen M. Reed's nominators described him as the final word in equine neurology. Many consider him one of the world's best equine neurologists. Reed's research, published in 180 scholarly journals, has made significant advances in equine medicine, neurology, physiology and pathophysiology and brought him international acclaim. He has been a role model and mentor to hundreds of aspiring equine practitioners.

“He has spent 40 years disseminating information to improve the health and welfare of horses,” said James MacLeod, UK Ag Equine Programs director and Gluck Center musculoskeletal researcher. “(It's been) quite an accomplishment. In addition, he's trained many students and residents and worked with collaborators and had a huge impact in the field.”

One of his nominators summarized Reed's career by writing “equine neurology would not be the science it is without Steve.”

Established in 1990, the UK Equine Research Hall of Fame honors international scientific community members who have made equine research a key part of their careers, recognizing their work, dedication and achievements. Nominees may be living or deceased, active in or retired from the field of equine research.

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FTC Delays Implementation of HISA’s Drug and Doping Program

In an order Monday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act's (HISA) anti-doping and medication control (ADMC) program would not go into effect as scheduled Jan. 1 due to swirling legal uncertainty.

“The bedrock principle of the Act is the need for uniformity,” wrote the FTC in the order, adding that “the Commission's approval of the Anti-Doping and Medication Control proposed rule would not result in uniformity because the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act has been held unconstitutional by a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.”

Oral arguments similarly surrounding HISA's facial constitutionality were held last week in a separate case before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.

“The Commission therefore disapproves the proposed rule without prejudice. If the legal uncertainty regarding the Act's constitutionality comes to be resolved, the Authority may resubmit the proposed rule or a similar rule, and the Commission will consider all comments filed in this proceeding as well as any updated or new comments and filings.

“In the meanwhile, and until any future proposed rule on the subject is approved by the Commission, State law will continue to regulate the matters that the proposed rule would have covered,” the order states.

According to HISA's CEO Lisa Lazarus, who held an impromptu press conference Monday afternoon, this means that the current regulatory “status quo” will remain in place at the start of 2023.

“They made reference to the fact that, since the FTC has not approved any ADMC rules under HISA's authority, that means all the state rules remain in full force and effect,” said Lazarus, stressing that this was her “interpretation” of the FTC order.

“If there wasn't a clear statement on this issue quickly, then we might get to Jan. 1, and there might be some uncertainty around who actually has the authority. It's important for the states to know now that they're going to continue to be the ones in charge of testing on Jan. 1,” Lazarus added.

When it comes to the financial implications from Monday's announcement, HISA will refrain from collecting any of the 2023 fee assessments, designated for the individual states or, alternately, the racetracks, said Lazarus.

“The vast majority of those fees relate to the anti-doping program,” said Lazarus, explaining that the 2023 fees will be collected once the legal uncertainty has been resolved.

“There are still assessments being paid for 2022 that obviously are still required for the state racing associations who opted in, and the racetracks to cover, because those costs have already been incurred, or are in the process of being incurred,” she added.

Ben Mosier, executive director of the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU), the enforcement arm of HISA's ADMC program, released a statement explaining that HIWU will continue its education and outreach efforts “to all stakeholders in the Thoroughbred industry,” despite the delay in implementation.

“As HISA re-submits the draft ADMC rules for the FTC's approval, HIWU will use any additional time before implementation as an opportunity to ensure the industry is even more prepared for an efficient rollout of this Program, which will promote fair competition in the sport of Thoroughbred racing and the safety and welfare of our human and equine athletes,” wrote Mosier.

According to Lazarus, “So long as that preparatory work doesn't extend beyond two to three months, [HIWU's work] would still be covered by the 2022 budget.” However, “if it extends longer, we would have to revisit that issue.”

As for potential timelines moving forward, Lazarus explained that once the ADMC rules have been resubmitted with the FTC, it would take approximately 60 days for them to then go into effect, “assuming that the FTC was going to approve them substantively.”

Lazarus also broached a number of different scenarios in what appears to many in the industry a swirling morass of unpredictability and confusion.

Last month, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals found the law facially unconstitutional due to the lack of rule-making authority ceded to the FTC. That mandate is set to go into effect Jan. 10.

But if HISA is able to secure a stay on the Fifth Circuit's ruling in the interim, “we would then go back to the FTC [with the ADMC rules] and seek approval on that basis,” said Lazarus.

A similar case questioning HISA's constitutionality is also before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. According to Lazarus, a ruling in the Sixth Circuit is expected “in the next month or two.”

If the Sixth Circuit issues a ruling favourable to HISA, “it would potentially give us the ability to continue with our program in those jurisdictions the Sixth Circuit covers,” said Lazarus.

“And it would also potentially lead to the [U.S.] Supreme Court hearing the case,” said added.

Nevertheless, even if the Sixth Circuit issues a friendly ruling on HISA, the FTC still might prove reluctant to allow HISA's ADMC to go into effect in those jurisdictions as the new law wouldn't be implemented uniformly, said Lazarus.

“For that reason, it's very possible the FTC would maintain the position that we shouldn't resubmit our rules until we have clear ability to move forward and launch across the whole country,” said Lazarus.

Another potential fix to the current knot of legal problems is a congressional re-write of the rules to cede more rule-making power to the FTC. Lazarus declined to speculate on the likelihood and possibility of that option.

A number of experts have questioned whether the legal uncertainty surrounding HISA's constitutionality puts into jeopardy the law's racetrack safety rules, already in effect. Lazarus said that Monday's order has no effect on the racetrack safety prong of the program.

“This related solely to the ADMC rules, and also, it was not a substantive review,” said Lazarus. “It was a statement on their perspective with regards to the legal uncertainties and ensuring there's clarity before we launch the new program.”

Ed Martin, the Association of Racing Commissioners International's (ARCI) president and CEO, referenced a letter the organization sent last week to the FTC highlighting “a real Catch-22” come Jan.1 concerning the legality of HISA's ADMC program.

“We are appreciative that the FTC listened and considered the request of the Association of Racing Commissioners International not to create regulatory uncertainty on Jan. 1 by approving the proposed HISA rules,” Martin told the TDN.

“Whoever got brought up on a charge could potentially have appealed it ad nauseam, and maybe win, which means there might be no rules in effect. That was the danger here,” Martin speculated. “They might be mad at me for bringing it up, but it needed to be brought up.”

The following is HISA's full statement in response to the FTC order:

“HISA appreciates the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) decision to deny HISA's draft Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) rules without prejudice as we actively seek to resolve current legal uncertainties. HISA is eager to launch Thoroughbred racing's first and long-awaited national, uniform ADMC program and stands ready to do so. We will re-submit the draft ADMC rules to the FTC for their review as soon as these legal uncertainties are resolved, and once approved, we will implement the program through the Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU). In the meantime, HIWU will continue to work toward the implementation of a uniform, independent anti-doping and medication control program that is administered consistently and fairly across the United States.”

In a statement, National HBPA CEO Eric Hamelback wrote, “The recent FTC decision is another positive step forward for horsemen in our battle against the unconstitutional takeover of our industry. The strength of our legal arguments led to a unanimous decision in the Fifth Circuit, and now the FTC has done the right thing in declining to defy a federal court that has found HISA unconstitutional. The FTC order is clear: state law continues to govern medication issues until our final victory in this case.”

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Former Navarro Veterinarian Pleads Guilty To Two Misdemeanors, Gets Ten Months In Prison

Veterinarian Dr. Erica Garcia was sentenced on Dec. 12 to ten months in federal prison after entering a guilty plea to two misdemeanor counts related to the large-scale racehorse doping case that broke in March 2020.

Garcia was ordered to pay a fine of $2,000 and is ordered to surrender to begin her sentence in March 2023. She will serve her time at a facility in Florida. She is also subject to one year supervised release after her sentence is complete.

Garcia entered a guilty plea to two counts of introducing into interstate commerce adulterated and misbranded drugs.

According to documents filed by attorneys for both sides ahead of the sentencing hearing, Garcia worked for Navarro during Florida winters for 11 years until they ceased their professional affiliation in April 2019. She admitted she administered non-FDA approved substances to Navarro's horses at the behest of Navarro and an unnamed veterinarian from up north.

“He had six or seven horses when I met him,” Garcia wrote in her letter to U.S. District Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil. “At first impression, I found him to be an ambitious young man hell bent on trying to prove himself. He used to flirt with me while I was tending to my clients in other barns, but I never took him seriously. Then one day I started working for the vet who worked for Jorge which therefore, by default, made me Jorge's vet too. We got along pretty well. He was very focused and you could tell he really cared. One day he left for a couple of years to try his luck at some of the other tracks.”

Garcia administered red acid, which she purchased from RacehorseMeds, a drug called “monkey” (which she said she thought was a vitamin shot), compounded clenbuterol, and SGF-1000.

Garcia's defense team summarized the results of testing on some of the substances Garcia admitted to giving to horses.

“Based on information and belief, red acid is an anti-inflammatory containing hyaluronic acid,” read the defense's pre-sentencing report.

The report also said a test on the substance called “monkey” contained “trace amounts of cobalt.”

Read our previous reporting on cobalt as a performance-enhancer here and here.

In her letter, Garcia summarized the rise and fall of her former client as she saw it.

“He never cut corners on the care of his animals,” Garcia wrote of Navarro. “He studied other leading trainers and tried to incorporate some of their methods into his own training style.

“Then, after a couple of years, things started to change. I think the pressure got to him. He used to say he was going to fire all his clients and go back to training only 20 horses, then 15 new horses would show up in the following week. Around this time, someone introduced him to the standarbred[sic] trainers. They began telling him what to do and tried to convince him to manage his business the way they did. He stopped listening to me as his vet and I could see things were not going in the right direction. I probably should have left then. Stupidly, I stayed.”

“….Time went on and Jorge was no longer the person I had first met. The pressures of the industry were unyielding. The expectation to be the best and to keep improving, growing and winning became very taxing on him.”

Garcia admitted in her letter to the judge that she used SGF-1000 on “another trainer's horse” but did not name the trainer and also that she continued using red acid after she left Navarro's employment in April 2019.

Attorneys for both sides attribute the professional split between Garcia and Navarro to a decision by Garcia or someone on her team to report a suspected case of strangles from Navarro's barn. According to Garcia, Navarro didn't want the scrutiny this could bring from state animal health officials and did not want to be subjected to a quarantine that would limit training.

There were no strangles outbreaks reported in Florida in April 2019, according to the Equine Disease Communication Center.

Since her arrest, Garcia has been working with small animals, exotic animals, and injured wildlife. She still has her veterinary license in Florida although she is precluded as a condition of bail from working on racehorses and has had her track license revoked.

Prosecutors, who had sought a 24-month prison sentence, concede that their decision to allow her to plead guilty to misdemeanors rather than felony charges means the state veterinary board may use its discretion when it decides whether to revoke her veterinary license.

State licensing boards typically do not consider a licensee's status until a criminal case against them has fully resolved.

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Legal Uncertainty Leads FTC To Disapprove HISA Medication Rules

The Federal Trade Commission has issued an Order disapproving the Anti-Doping and Medication Control proposed rule submitted by the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority to its enforcement rule after a public comment period. The Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act, which recognized the Authority, includes a requirement that its rules must be submitted for approval to the FTC.

The Commission's Order explains that its disapproval arises from the legal uncertainty arising from a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which declared the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act unconstitutional. Because the next steps in the litigation could render the proposed rule unenforceable in the states that make up the circuit and in those that are plaintiffs in litigation, approving the proposed rule would be inconsistent with the Act's foundational principle that horseracing rules be uniform across the nation. Accordingly, the Commission did not reach the merits of the proposed rule, which the Authority may re-submit if the legal uncertainty is resolved.

The Commission vote to approve the rule modification was 3-0-1, with Commissioner Christine S. Wilson abstaining.

The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition, and protect and educate consumers. You can learn more about consumer topics and report scams, fraud, and bad business practices online at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Follow the FTC on social media, read our blogs and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.

Statement from HISA

Statement from Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit Executive Director Ben Mosier

“As the designated independent enforcement agency of the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority's (HISA) Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Program, the Horseracing Integrity & Welfare Unit (HIWU) has spent the past seven months preparing for the Program's implementation on January 1, 2023, and stood ready to enforce this national, uniform program on that date pending approval from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Following today's decision by the FTC to deny HISA's draft ADMC rules without prejudice due to current legal uncertainties, HIWU will continue its education and outreach efforts to all stakeholders in the Thoroughbred industry. As HISA re-submits the draft ADMC rules for the FTC's approval, HIWU will use any additional time before implementation as an opportunity to ensure the industry is even more prepared for an efficient rollout of this Program, which will promote fair competition in the sport of Thoroughbred racing and the safety and welfare of our human and equine athletes.”

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