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ARCI Analysis: McConnell Bill Authorizes Strict Control of Medications in Training

The Association of Racing Commissioners International is preparing an analysis of the newly proposed legislation, the “Horseracing Integrity and Safety Act,” by Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell (R), so the group can prepare for a “smooth transition” should the measure be enacted. Earlier this week, the ARCI released an initial statement looking at the bill's effect on breeders.

The federally sanctioned authority empowered by newly proposed legislation by Senator McConnell will be able to impose strict controls on the use of any therapeutic medications administered to a “covered horse,” effectively setting the stage for a program that could require a veterinarian to receive prior permission before treating the horse with a prescription medication.

Such a system, if implemented, would parallel the “therapeutic use exemption” program in human sport. Under the requirements of the World Anti-Doping Agency code, advance permission must be obtained before a controlled substance is administered to an athlete in training or competition.

Unlike human sport, it is not expected that the new Authority would depart from current ARCI Model Rules or International Federation of Horseracing Authorities standards that prohibit such drugs to be present in the horse when it races.

But S.4547 does give the new Authority powers to control all substances administered to horses under its jurisdiction. Under the proposal, a “covered horse” comes under the jurisdiction of the new Authority after its first timed workout at a racetrack.

The analysis finds that the new Authority could, for the first time, put in place a system to control what some believe is the overuse of certain drugs in the care and preparation of horses intended to race. Whether it will actually do so, the timing of such a change, or how it would work is not yet known.

Given the number of racehorses potentially regulated by the new Authority such a program would require additional resources than what is currently available in the regulatory network in order to review such applications.

State Racing Commissions are not authorized to regulate the practice of veterinary medicine. There has, however, been a trend within the ARCI and the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium to require commission notification of certain treatments and in some limited circumstances advance approval. Current regulatory policy relies largely on the ability of a commission to exclude a horse from competition. In some jurisdictions legal and liability concerns have affected the extent of the changes that could be done.

In July 2019, the ARCI proposed a private regulatory scheme using existing breed registry authority to require submission of all veterinary treatment records, including the diagnosis required for treatments, of all intended racehorses from birth forward, These records would be electronically reviewed to “red flag” horses in need of greater monitoring in order to help regulatory veterinarians assess whether a horse is high risk and should be excluded from competition.

As S.4547 has a greater focus on anti-doping, it does not require such a system. The bill does effectively put the actual horse under the regulatory authority of the new Authority at a uniform and consistent point in its career, eliminating inconsistencies that currently exist in state-based statutes and rules.

It remains unclear whether the Authority will require the submission of all veterinary records or will fall short of what the ARCI had asked the Jockey Club to require in 2019.

The post ARCI Analysis: McConnell Bill Authorizes Strict Control of Medications in Training appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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AAEP And RMTC Issue Warning: Thyroxine Isn’t A Wellness Supplement, It’s A Prescription Drug

At its February 2020 Meeting, the Racing Medication Testing Consortium's (RMTC) Board of Directors discussed reports of, and evidence for, the wholesale use of thyroxine in entire populations of racehorses as a 'wellness' supplement rather than as the prescription medication that it is.

The Board elected to seek input from, and partner with, the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) in producing an advisory on the appropriate use of thyroxine by providing education to stakeholders and addressing inappropriate or indiscriminate use of the prescription medication. And in so doing, also preserving the equine veterinarian's ability to prescribe thyroxine within the context of an appropriate examination and diagnostic testing in an individual horse.

The RMTC's Scientific Advisory Committee and AAEP's Racing Committee collaborated in drafting the advisory. During its deliberations the AAEP Racing Committee relied on the principles in the AAEP's Position on Therapeutic Medication for the Racehorse, particularly the following:

The AAEP condemns the administration of non-therapeutic or unprescribed medications to racehorses based on our belief that it is not in the interest of horse welfare and racing integrity. (Note: the definition of prescription includes the concept of an individual patient)
The AAEP believes that all therapeutic medication (prescription or otherwise) should be administered by or under the direction of a licensed veterinarian and based on a diagnosis.

“The health and safety of racehorses are inextricably linked to racing's integrity, and the drafting of this document has reinforced the AAEP's and RMTC's shared priorities of promoting equine health and racing integrity,” Jeff Berk, VMD, Chair AAEP Racing Committee.

The post AAEP And RMTC Issue Warning: Thyroxine Isn’t A Wellness Supplement, It’s A Prescription Drug appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Report: Baffert’s Lidocaine Findings Not Likely A Sign Of An Effort To Mask Injury

Now that the results of split sample tests are back on Bob Baffert trainees Charlatan and Gamine, both of whom won races at Oaklawn Park in early May, Baffert's attorney has confirmed the positive tests were for lidocaine. Dr. Mary Scollay, executive director and COO of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, told The Blood-Horse this week that it seems unlikely a trainer would use lidocaine intentionally to mask a lame horse before a race.

Lidocaine has a number of accepted therapeutic uses — as a topical numbing agent, it can be deployed before a veterinarian puts in stitches to a wound, or can be helpful to relieve pain or swelling from a bug bite or other skin issue in a spot that's hard to bandage. It can also be injected as a temporary nerve block as part of a standard lameness exam. In order to isolate the source of a lameness, veterinarians will carefully apply short-acting nerve blocks to work out, by process of elimination, which structures are responsible for a horse's gait abnormality and then target their diagnostic imaging from there.

It seemed unlikely to Scollay that someone would numb a horse with lidocaine before a race to mask a problem or gain a competitive advantage because it's well-known as a substance easily detected in drug tests.

Still, Scollay told writer Eric Mitchell, she's of the opinion that horses should be disqualified in the case of medication violations, because not doing so unfairly disadvantages the horse that finished second with no medication overages. In the case of Charlatan and Gamine, Arkansas guidelines would allow for disqualification and reallocation of purse money if the commission determines a violation occurred.

Baffert's attorney told media Monday the overages were the result of a pain patch a member of Baffert's staff was using to relieve back pain, and that he intends to defend the cases before the commission.