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Hearing: Blea’s Attorney Says Allegations Do Not Meet ‘Extraordinary Standard’ For License Suspension

The formal hearing of the California Veterinary Medical Board's petition for the interim suspension of California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) equine medical director Jeff Blea's medical license occurred on Friday, reports the Thoroughbred Daily News. Judge Nana Chin now has 30 days to issue a ruling.

Blea is facing eight causes for discipline, according to formal “accusation” documents issued in late December. Blea's veterinary license was suspended at an emergency meeting held on Christmas Eve. He has not been operating his racetrack practice since taking the job of equine medical director last summer.

Blea has been placed on administrative leave and has also been removed from his role overseeing the investigation into the death of Bob Baffert-trained Medina Spirit, who dropped dead after completing a workout at Santa Anita. The equine medical director is not responsible for actually performing necropsies or testing biological samples on horses who die in racing or training in California or elsewhere. Those responsibilities go to veterinary pathologists and toxicologists — in California, those duties are contracted to UC-Davis, though some samples have been shipped outside California in this particular case. The equine medical director would be responsible for gathering reports and interpreting them for presentation to the board and to the public.

Deputy attorney general Elaine Yan, representing the medical board, argued Friday that the allegations against Blea are violations of the veterinary medical practice act.

Meanwhile, Blea's attorney George Wallace argued that the allegations against the veterinarian do not meet the “extraordinary standard” generally required for the suspension of a veterinary license.

“You've had drunken veterinarians. You've had substance abusing veterinarians who you would not trust in a surgical suite. You have had grossly incompetent veterinarians who keep messing up even after the accusations have been filed,” said Wallace.

“In none of those cases has the veterinary medical board sought in interim suspension order. Dr. Blea is apparently the most dangerous veterinarian in existence in California, and the board has not articulated an actual present remotely likely danger that is posed by letting this disciplinary process go through the process of hearing the merits and a determination.”

Earlier this week, Dr. Gregory Ferraro, chairman of the California Horse Racing Board, called the recent investigation and action by the Veterinary Medical Board to temporarily suspend Blea's license an “unwarranted and unfair vendetta” that is “ill-advised and slanderous.” Ferraro said Blea has become a “pawn in a politically driven effort” to hurt horse racing in California. As a result of Blea having to be put on administrative leave from his post with the CHRB, Ferraro added, “the health and safety of racehorses are being compromised.”

Read more at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

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CHRB Backs Blea Ahead of ‘Dangerousness’ Hearing

Three members of the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB), plus the agency's executive director, on Thursday advocated for the reinstatement of temporarily suspended CHRB equine medical director Jeff Blea on the eve of his hearing before the California Veterinary Medical Board (VMB) to rule on a list of allegations that include administering “dangerous drugs” to racehorses without examination or medical necessity.

“For my own two cents as chairman, I think that the issues surrounding Dr. Jeff Blea brought forth by the veterinary medical board are both ill-advised and slanderous,” said CHRB chair Gregory Ferraro, who is also a licensed veterinarian.

“Unfortunately, he has now become a pawn in a politically driven agenda to disparage horse racing in California,” Ferraro said. “The people behind this effort are willing to sully and besmirch Dr. Blea's reputation to achieve their ends. And while they are in the process of achieving these goals, the health and safety of racehorses are being compromised every day that Dr. Blea is not allowed to perform his duties.

“Personally, I am dismayed that no one in authority is willing to step forward and call out this ordeal for what it is–an unwarranted and unfair vendetta,” Ferraro summed up.

No members of the CHRB voiced criticisms of Blea. But when the topic was opened up to hear the opinions of nine members of the public who had requested commentary time, sentiment turned against Blea and the CHRB's backing of him by an 8-1 margin.

Among the public opinions voiced were some that advocated for letting the VMB process play out so Blea's allegedly “reckless” behavior could be properly adjudicated. One speaker also called for Ferraro to go on the record by naming the people or entities he believes are slandering Blea.

After the public portion of the Jan. 20 CHRB meeting, the board was scheduled to discuss the case in greater detail while operating in a closed executive session.

TDN reported last week how the VMB also claims that Blea presents a “danger to public health, safety and welfare” due to his oversight of the high-profile investigation into the death of the Bob Baffert-trained Medina Spirit, the GI Kentucky Derby winner who collapsed and died after a scheduled workout Dec. 6 at Santa Anita Park.

The alleged medication violations occurred before Blea's tenure began at the CHRB, when he was previously employed as an attending veterinarian who treated racehorses.

“Although I question the veracity of those allegations, what is particularly disturbing is the desire to suspend his veterinary license in advance of his hearing, and more to the point, prevent him from working in his role as equine medical director,” said Scott Chaney, the CHRB's executive director.

“I am sorry for Dr. Blea and his family. And although he has been professional and hopeful throughout this ordeal, it is not right that his excellent reputation be besmirched in this way,” Chaney said.

Chaney said the CHRB has hired outside legal counsel to represent its interests in the case and to “right this wrong.” He added that acting veterinary personnel have been appointed to ensure that the equine medical director's duties get covered, but that the CHRB is “less effective without him.”

CHRB vice chair Oscar Gonzales said, “In order for the CHRB to keep moving in the right direction, we need Dr. Blea as equine medical director.”

Commissioner Alex Solis also spoke out in defense of Blea's character and competence.

None of the four CHRB-affiliated speakers directly addressed the charges against Blea. They largely chose to cite declining equine fatality statistics at the state's racetracks, which they said underscored the importance of having their chosen equine medical director in place to further those efforts.

Gonzales cited “outdated standards and regulations” as a factor in Blea's case, and he implored the CHRB and VMB to meet “as soon as possible” to update such standards to prevent similar “unintended consequences.”

Public commenter Lynn Freudenberg, who signed up to speak as a member of an organization called “Kill Racing, Not Horses,” advocated for the CHRB to take an introspective look at its defense of Blea.

“I know you guys have a personal relationship with Dr. Blea. And I can see why you like him. He's your veterinarian–of course you like him,” Freudenberg said. “But you have to realize that the veterinary board has reason and they have evidence, and they're asking for this to be debated if [Blea's conduct] is wrong.

“Dr. Blea is being charged with negligence. He's administering drugs, medications [and applying] treatment to animals without performing an examination or performing a diagnosis. He's just blindly giving things out. There's six cases, and they have a list of drugs that go with it,” Freudenberg said.

“These are all recent [allegations]. This is nothing from the past,” Freudenberg said. “I don't know why you would stand behind somebody when his own veterinary board is going against him. I think you have to open your eyes and see what's going on and why this is happening.”

A Jan. 11 TDN investigation into the accusations against Blea found a broad consensus among veterinary medical experts that the alleged infractions are largely matters of poor record keeping that rarely, if ever, rise to the level of a suspended license.

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‘Ill Advised And Slanderous’: CHRB Chairman Unloads On Vet Board Over Blea Investigation

Dr. Gregory Ferraro, chairman of the California Horse Racing Board, called the recent investigation and action by the California Veterinary Medical Board to temporarily suspend the license of the CHRB's equine medical director, Dr. Jeff Blea, an “unwarranted and unfair vendetta” that is “ill advised and slanderous.” Ferraro said Blea has become a “pawn in a politically driven effort” to hurt horse racing in California. As a result of Blea having to be put on administrative leave from his post with the CHRB, Ferraro added, “the health and safety of racehorses are being compromised.”

Ferraro, formerly a racetrack practitioner and director of the University of California-Davis Center for Equine Health, made the remarks during Thursday's regularly scheduled meeting of the CHRB following a report by the regulatory agency's executive director, Scott Chaney. Chaney, a one-time assistant trainer at Southern California racetracks, also defended Blea's integrity and professionalism, as did CHRB vice chairman Oscar Gonzalez and commissioner Alex Solis, a retired jockey.

Chaney's comments to the board follow:

“As you know, the California Veterinary Medical Board has filed accusations against our Equine Medical Director, Dr. Jeff Blea last month alleging violations from his previous employment as an attending veterinarian. Although I question the veracity of those allegations, what is particularly disturbing is the desire to suspend his veterinary license in advance of his hearing and more to the point, prevent him from working in his role as Equine Medical Director.

“The CHRB has hired outside counsel to represent our interests and in the interim, UC Davis, for which Dr. Blea works, has appointed acting EMDs to fulfill the statutory and regulatory roles. On a personal note, I would like to say that I have known and worked with Dr. Blea for more than 20 years. He is the one of the finest and most ethical veterinarians I have met and more importantly, one of the finest humans with whom I have interacted. I am sorry for Dr. Blea and his family, and although he has been professional and hopeful throughout this ordeal, it is not right that his excellent reputation be besmirched in this way.

“The CHRB is doing everything in its legal power to right this wrong. And while we are making do for the time being, in a very real way, the CHRB is less effective at protecting animal welfare without him.“

Chaney gave a promising report on the decline in California horse racing fatalities in recent years, particularly in 2021. The 0.63 deaths per thousand starts for California racing in 2021 may be the lowest in the country, Chaney said, adding that it is difficult to compare data to other states that are far less transparent than California.

“Our reform efforts are working,” said Gonzalez, suggesting the CHRB will push to have Blea reinstated. “We need Dr. Blea as equine medical director.”

“I know how much he cares about horses,” said Solis.

Blea is among several racetrack veterinarians being investigated following anonymous complaints to the Veterinary Medical Board that certain regulations were not being followed. Other racetrack practitioners have called those regulations outdated and ill-suited to equine practice. Dr. Rick Arthur, the CHRB's former equine medical director, said his experiences with the Veterinary Medical Board have led him to believe some board members are anti-horse racing.

Blea is the only veterinarian being investigated whose license was temporarily suspended.

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‘A Significant Disconnect’: Equine Veterinarians Speak Out At California Veterinary Medical Board Meeting

California's equine veterinarians and its equine medical board need to have a meeting of the minds — that's the takeaway from a series of public comments ahead of the board's regularly-scheduled video conference meeting Jan. 19, where a large number of racetrack and sport horse practitioners dialed in to voice their concerns over the board's recent charges against racetrack licensees.

The most high-profile of the track veterinarians facing action against their veterinary license is California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) equine medical director Dr. Jeff Blea, whose license was suspended at an emergency hearing by the board on Christmas Eve. Blea is accused of failing to perform adequate examinations of horses prior to prescribing drugs to them, as well as lacking in record-keeping and other areas of the state's veterinary practice law. He has since been placed on administrative leave as the case plays out. Blea isn't the only one facing charges – Drs. Vince Baker, Sarah Graybill Jones, Kim Lewis Kuhlmann, Steven Lee Boyer, and Kenneth Carl Allison also had accusation documents filed against them in 2021 with similar charges. Only Blea's case has resulted in an emergency hearing.

Many in the racing industry have, publicly and privately, questioned the motivation of the veterinary medical board in its pursuit of charges against Blea, as well as its public presentation of the charges as being relevant to Blea's work in overseeing the death of Medina Spirit at Santa Anita in December. (We ran this letter to the editor from trainer Richard Mandella earlier this week testifying to the conditioner's relationship with Blea before he retired from racetrack practice.)

Speakers during the public comment period of the veterinary medical board meeting Jan. 19 did not get into the specifics of Blea's case or mention him by name, but most suggested that the regulations under which the board filed an accusation document against him were outdated and ill-suited to equine practice.

“Not every veterinary practice in this state is conducted on small animals in four-walled hospitals,” said Dr. Rick Arthur, retired racetrack practitioner and former equine medical director for CHRB. “The California Veterinary Medical Board regulations do not reflect the standard of practice, the high standard of practice in ambulatory practice in California, which makes it easy for this board to play 'Gotcha.' That has to change.”

“The scope and tone of the charges on your website are extreme, and they don't' appear to be based on any knowledge of the standards of equine practice in this state,” said Dr. Michael Manno, racetrack veterinarian with San Dieguito Equine Group. “I can tell you that if you can suspend a license based on these accusations and complaints, most of the veterinarians that practice equine medicine in this state might as well hand in their licenses right now.”

Dan Baxter, executive director of the California Veterinary Medical Association, voiced the organization's concern about whether the regulations are in touch with business practices.

“On the heels of recent enforcement action taken by the veterinary medical board, the CVMA has received emails and phone calls from numerous members practicing within the California equine community concerning the board's interpretations of minimum practice standards and enforcement of those standards,” he said. “We fear that there may be a significant disconnect between the reasonable, sound practice standards observed by equine practitioners in the field and the standards to which those same practitioners are being held by the board.

“Without a meeting of the minds between this board, the body interpreting and enforcing the legal standards of practice, and the equine practitioners subject to that enforcement, the CVMA is deeply concerned that equine veterinary practice within the state of California, already a profession in which the supply of qualified clinicians is limited, may be further gutted due to the departure of practitioners unwilling to subject their licenses or livelihoods to the vagaries of a framework that does not reflect the standard of practice observed by the equine veterinary community in this state.”

Dr. Russ Sakai, surgeon at Petaluma Equine, agreed and also expressed concern about what these types of regulatory actions may mean for veterinary students.

“There is a lack of veterinarians graduating and coming into equine practice,” said Sakai. “I think it's difficult to recruit veterinarians at the student level, especially when they see equine veterinarians being subjected to this sort of what appears to be unfair treatment, or being treated with a double standard by a group of members that seem to have not a very thorough understanding of equine practice.”

After hearing the feedback, veterinary board vice president asked the California Veterinary Medical Association to submit a presentation to the board outlining their concerns about the state's Veterinary Practice Act as applied to equine medicine and any regulatory proposals they had to remedy those issues.

There were no specific cases set to be discussed by board members during the public portion of the meeting on Jan. 19 or during a follow-up meeting scheduled for Jan. 20.

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