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California Vet Blea’s License Suspended on Interim Basis

The California Veterinary Medical Board has filed an interim suspension order against the license of Jeff Blea, the UC Davis Equine Medical Director who advises the California Horse Racing Board on matters relating to equine health and welfare. The order reads, “The allegations include prescribing, dispensing, and/or administering thyroxine and other drugs to racehorses without establishing a veterinarian-client-patient relationship (VCPR), without performing an examination, without forming a diagnosis, and without medical necessity.”

According to John Cherwa at the Los Angeles Times, an emergency hearing was held Dec. 24, and Administrative Law Judge Nana Chin signed the temporary suspension order.

The petitioner for the order was Jessica Sieferman, the Executive Officer of the California Veterinary Medical Board, and was filed by Rob Bonta, the Attorney General of California. They write in her petition that “the Board is investigating licensed veterinarians who have prescribed, dispensed, or administered drugs to racehorses, and the medical necessity of such drugs.”

The filing suggests that as a practicing veterinarian, Blea has a vested interest in the findings of the Medina Spirit necropsy, and that suspending his license will “prevent the appearance of impropriety,” while failing to clearly connect the dots as to why Blea specifically would have a vested interest simply by virtue of being a veterinarian or in his administrative roles.

It reads, “Because Respondent Blea is alleged to have administered dangerous and medically unnecessary drugs to numerous racehorses, it stands to reason that he approves of such practice by other veterinarians. Any necropsy and investigation results identifying any racehorse's cause of death as drug-related would be detrimental to Respondent Blea, his career, and his livelihood. With the Board's allegations pending, there exists a clear conflict of interest with Respondent Blea's continued involvement in the drug testing program and investigations. The requested interim suspension order will prevent the appearance of impropriety and any possible undue influence by Respondent Blea. The Medina Spirit investigation is currently underway. An impartial, complete and transparent investigation without undue influence and the appearance of impropriety is necessary to determine the root cause of Medina Spirit's death so that remedial action can be taken to prevent additional equine deaths.”

The filing goes on to say that Blea treated six horses with “dangerous drugs” without showing that he completed a “proper physical examination. A proper physical examination would consist of a documented general organ-system examination and may consist of more detailed and focused examinations of particular areas of interest.” It says that Blea “administered at least one of the following dangerous drugs…Thyro-L, Lasix, acepromazine, Adequan, phenylbutazone, methocarbamol, glycopyrrolate, trichlomethiazide/dexamethasone, Dormosedan, and Torbugesic.”

“Respondent Blea is alleged to have committed medication violations on racehorses and is part of the team that oversees the UC Davis drug testing program and investigates medication violations. The appearance of the impropriety alone erodes public trust. The mission of the Board is to protect consumers and animals. Adequate protection of racehorses requires learning the true causes of their sudden deaths so proper remedial action can be taken. That can only happen with impartial, complete and transparent investigations. Petitioner requests the Court to grant the interim suspension order suspending Respondent Blea's license,” the report concludes.

Blea is a respected veteran of the veterinary medical field, both in California and nationally. Aside from decades of equine practice, during which time he has been associated with some of the most well-regarded horsemen in the business, like Richard Mandella, Blea is also a former chair of the American Association of Equine Practitioners' Racing Committee. He also sits on the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act's Anti-Doping and Medication Control Standing Committee.

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CHRB Investigative Reports Add Details to NYRA’s Amended Charges Against Baffert

In a press release Monday, the New York Racing Association (NYRA) announced that it had amended its ongoing Statement of Charges issued against trainer Bob Baffert to include a pair of positive tests for phenylbutazone (bute) in 2019 in California and a subsequent inspection of the trainer's barn which allegedly uncovered an unlocked medication cabinet, improperly labeled medications and the presence of unsecured phenylbutazone paste.

NYRA has charged Baffert with engaging in conduct detrimental to the best interests of racing and has sought to temporarily ban the trainer from its tracks. A hearing on the matter is scheduled to begin Jan. 24.

Dr. Rick Arthur, who was the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) equine medical director at the time of the 2019 violations, told TDN Monday that barn inspections are “routine” after a post-race medication positive, and that there is no regulatory requirement for drug cabinets to be locked, even though the board strongly encourages medications to be securely stored.

Arthur also explained that the proper labeling of medications is primarily the veterinarian's responsibility, and that a crucial question is: What were the mislabeled drugs?

“If it's Gastrogard tubes out of the box,” said Arthur Monday, pointing to a commonly used ulcer medication, “it's a technical violation, and not a serious one at all. If it was serious, an official warning or complaint would have been filed against either the trainer or the dispensing veterinarian.”

The investigation reports for the barn inspections–obtained through a California Public Records Act (CPRA) request–shed some light on the nature of NYRA's amended complaint but fail to answer the issue of what the mislabeled drugs actually were.

No subsequent warnings or complaints were filed against either Baffert or the attending veterinarian, Dr. Vince Baker, however.

The Del Mar barn inspection identified by the NYRA press release pertains to the one conducted Aug. 16, after the Baffert-trained Eclair (Bernardini) tested positive for bute after finishing 4th at Del Mar Aug. 3. Baffert was fined $1,500. Eclair tested positive with 2.88 micrograms per milliliter (ug/mL) of bute in her system.

According to the report, the investigator found “25 different kinds of medications that are not properly labeled and expired. There is no lock on the medication cabinet however the tack room door has lock capabilities. Dr. Vince Baker advised he would be taking care of the situation.”

According to the report, Baker told the investigator he did not know how Eclair tested positive for bute. “Baffert stated he thinks someone is intentionally giving bute to his horses and mentioned that he would be offering a reward to help solve the case,” the report added.

According to the report, Baker told the investigator he had treated Eclair no later than 10:30 am two days before the race.

Baker also told the investigator that he treated other Baffert runners with bute the following day, but that he “does not believe he inadvertently treated 'Eclair' by mistake,” according to the report.

The CHRB conducted a separate inspection of Baffert's Del Mar barn Aug. 10, after Cruel Intention (Smiling Tiger) tested positive for bute after finishing 3rd at Del Mar July 27 in the Real Good Deal S.

Baffert was fined $500. Cruel Intention tested positive with 0.51 ug/mL of bute in his system.

In light of the Santa Anita welfare crisis the spring of 2019, the CHRB reduced just months earlier the permissible level of race-day bute from 2 ug/mL to a level of non-detect.

Six days prior to the second barn inspection, the CHRB investigator found “expired medications and those that were up to date were properly labeled. There is no lock on the medication cabinet however the door has lock capabilities,” according to the inspection report.

According to the report, Baker told the investigator he treated three of Baffert's horses at the same time with bute, “and does not know why only one horse [Cruel Intention] tested positive for it.”

The two inspection reports can be read here and here.

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NYRA Amends Charges Against Baffert to Include Bute Overages

by Bill Finley and Dan Ross

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) has amended its Statement of Charges issued against trainer Bob Baffert to include a pair of positive tests for phenylbutazone that occurred in 2019 in California and a subsequent inspection of the trainer's barn in which it alleges that 25 improperly labeled medications were found.

NYRA's Statement of Charges now contains allegations that, over a 16-month period prior to the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby, six horses under Baffert's care violated rules and regulations in six separate races.

Having charged Baffert with engaging in conduct detrimental to the best interests of racing, NYRA has sought to temporarily ban the trainer from its tracks. A hearing on the matter is scheduled to begin Jan. 24.

Baffert has had numerous drug positives in recent years, including the finding that Medina Spirit (Protonico) had the substance betamethasone in his system when winning the 2021 GI Kentucky Derby.

After a July 27, 2019 race at Del Mar the gelding Cruel Intention (Smiling Tiger) tested positive for a bute overage and Baffert was fined $500. One week later, the Baffert-trained Eclair (Bernardini) also tested positive for bute and Baffert was fined $2,500.

While the two bute overages were not new news, the details of the barn inspection had not previously been made public. According to the Statement of Charges, Baffert's barn was inspected by the CHRB on or about Aug. 16, 2019 and the inspection “revealed that 25 medications were not properly labeled and there was no lock on the medication cabinet.” NYRA also claims that Baffert told the CHRB that he did not know how the bute got into the horses' systems and said that he would be offering a reward to solve the case.

Rick Arthur, who was the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) equine medical director at the time of the violations, told the TDN that, while he couldn't remember specifics of the case, such barn inspections are “routine” after a post-race medication positive to “try to identify potential sources of the violation and advise trainers how to better manage their stables.”

Arthur added that there is no regulatory requirement for drug cabinets to be locked, even though the board strongly encourages medications to be securely stored.

Furthermore, the proper labeling of medications is primarily the veterinarian's responsibility, Arthur said, and that a crucial question is: What were the mislabeled drugs?

“If it's Gastrogard tubes out of the box,” said Arthur, pointing to a commonly used ulcer medication, “it's a technical violation, and not a serious one at all. If it was serious, an official warning or complaint would have been filed against either the trainer or the dispensing veterinarian.”

The amended charges also cite a rule change implemented by Churchill Downs in which no horses trained by Baffert are eligible to earn points for the Derby or the GI Kentucky Oaks and Baffert's claims that he would hire a veterinarian to ensure against future rule violations. The veterinarian, Dr. Michael Hore, was never hired.

In addition to conduct detrimental to the best interests of racing, NYRA is charging Baffert with conduct detrimental to the health and safety of horses and jockeys and conduct detrimental to NYRA business operations.

Peter Sherwood, a retired New York State Supreme Court Justice, will serve as hearing officer in the Baffert matter.

By deadline for this story, Baffert's attorney Craig Robertson had not returned a phone call seeking comment.

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Blea, Baker Among California Veterinarians Hit With Accusations From Veterinary Medical Board

Three racetrack veterinarians in Southern California are the subjects of formal “accusation” documents from the state's veterinary medical board saying they violated a series of regulations governing their jobs. Dr. Jeff Blea, longtime racetrack practitioner and equine medical director for the California Horse Racing Board, is facing eight causes for discipline; Dr. Vince Baker, practitioner and managing licensee of Equine Medical Center in Cypress, Calif., faces 15 causes for discipline; Dr. Sarah Graybill Jones, a practitioner who works for Equine Medical Center, faces seven causes for discipline.

All three could see their veterinary licenses revoked or suspended, may be required to pay the Board back for reasonable costs of investigation, and/or be ordered to pay fines not exceeding $5,000.

The accusation documents represent the charges filed by the veterinary board. Hearings have yet to be held to determine whether and what disciplinary action may be taken.

The primary focus for much of the accusation documents involves record-keeping, both records of examination and diagnosis ahead of treatment and records of drugs dispensed, including controlled substances in some instances. In several cases, the veterinary medical board accuses the veterinarians of failing to establish a valid veterinary-client-patient relationship (VCPR) per state regulations because it's not clear from existing records that the veterinarians examined horses prior to dispensing medications.

The accusations outline the treatment of racehorses identified only by their initials and in large part, without trainer or owner names attached. The exception seems to be in the accusation document for Baker. As managing licensee of Equine Medical Center, he is considered to have some responsibility for the record-keeping of veterinarians working at the practice. A portion of the accusation document detailed records from other veterinarians at the clinic that seemed to similarly be missing identifying information, examination records, or treatment plans as required by law. In these cases, specific clients (trainers) were mentioned and included Carla Gaines, Doug O'Neill, and Bob Baffert. Baker has long been a key part of the veterinary team treating Baffert's horses, although in the accusation documents the medical board noted it was Jones who administered treatments to two unidentified Baffert horses and later billed the treatments under Baker's name.

The majority of substances listed in the documents are routine and legal therapeutic medications. By the veterinary medical board's legal definition, however, some were considered “dangerous” if they bore the phrase “RX only” on the label. Many, like Lasix, aren't considered by a layperson's definition to be inherently dangerous or exotic. Some of the drugs mentioned however, were also considered by the state to be misbranded because they were produced outside of federal oversight. Thyro-L, the trade name for levothyroxine powder, falls into this category as it is not FDA-approved and was allegedly dispensed by both Baker and Blea. Baker is also accused of using compounded substances from Buy Rite Drugs which were missing best usage dates, as well as Stop Two and EMP Drench, which the board also says fit the state's definition of misbranded drugs.

Some of the records the board considered to be inadequate from Baker's practice were for more tightly-regulated substances like Euthasol and ketamine.

An anonymous tip earlier this year prompted the investigation by the medical board into Blea in February. Blea took over his current role as CHRB equine medical director in June. In Baker's case, the medical board had performed a routine inspection of EMC's mobile unit in August 2019 and noted deficiencies in medical records and drug logs. The board visited the clinic's base in May 2020 and also received an anonymous complaint about Baker and others in February 2021.

Although identifying horse information was excluded in the documents, treatment dates were included. For Blea, they ranged from early 2020 to February 2021. For Baker, the dates ranged from January 2019 to August 2020. For Jones, the dates were concentrated in March 2020.

According to a report from the Los Angeles Times Dec. 23, an emergency hearing in Blea's case is scheduled for Dec. 24. The Times also notes that the position of equine medical director does not require an active veterinary license.

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