Tracks Plan to Phase Out Lasix; Horsemen Share Concerns

In what would be a significant change in how 2-year-old races and stakes races are conducted in the United States, 20 of the leading tracks announced plans April 18 to phase out the use of race-day medication beginning with juvenile races next year and then adding listed and graded stakes beginning in 2021.

The proposal to end the use of furosemide (Salix, commonly called Lasix) has support from some leading industry groups but also saw opposition and concerns raised by horsemen's groups and regulators.

Lasix is administered to prevent exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage, but its use is out of line with other major international racing jurisdictions. On Thursday, a coalition of leading Thoroughbred racing organizations announced plans to move closer to that standard.

Coalition racetracks that signed on to the initiative include all tracks owned or operated by Churchill Downs Inc., the New York Racing Association, and The Stronach Group, as well as Del Mar, Keeneland, Lone Star Park, Remington Park, Los Alamitos Racecourse (Thoroughbred meets), Oaklawn Park, and Tampa Bay Downs. Taken together, the tracks represent 86% of graded or listed stakes races in the U.S. in 2018. 

If the plan is implemented, current yearlings would not race on medication next season or in the Triple Crown races in 2021.

In a release, the coalition tracks said they would work diligently with their respective horsemen's associations and racing commissions toward enacting the new standards, although Thursday those groups raised many concerns about the new rules. 

The three track owners that offer the majority of graded stakes in the U.S. support the changes.

"This is a progressive and unified approach to the subject of race-day medication, achieving consistency with international standards for young horses and those that form the foundations of our breeding stock," said NYRA president and CEO David O'Rourke. 

"This is a huge moment that signals a collective move to evolve this legacy sport. While there is still more work to be done, these reforms are a good start," said The Stronch Group chairman and president Belinda Stronach. "This industry coalition has taken an important step forward toward a uniform policy, and we are committed to focusing our attention and resources on how to make further improvements that directly prioritize equine health and safety. We applaud our industry partners, and we look forward to continued collaboration."

"Over the past several years, we have met with numerous stakeholders to drive action on many of our sport's central issues," said CDI CEO Bill Carstanjen. "This is a significant and meaningful step to further harmonize American racing with international standards. We will continue to work with other stakeholders, including our horsemen and regulatory agencies, to fully implement this and other important reforms."

Stronach referenced equine safety in Thursday's announcement, and the release comes on the heels of equine safety concerns raised at Santa Anita Park following a rash of breakdowns there. Horsemen's groups had concerns about tying the new race-day medication policies to equine safety. New York Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association president Joe Appelbaum questioned putting the focus on Lasix.

"The recent breakdown crisis at Santa Anita has rightly heightened attention to health and safety issues. In solely focusing on furosemide policy, the industry is missing an opportunity to enact comprehensive, far-reaching reforms that would directly benefit our horses by reducing the rate of equine fatalities," Appelbaum said. "Furosemide has been a hot-button topic within horse racing for well over a decade, yet no one credibly believes that its use has an effect on breakdowns. Our trainers widely believe that furosemide is an effective tool in combating exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage."

Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association CEO and president Alan Foreman said banning Lasix will not improve equine safety and could bog down the industry in another debate over the divisive issue at a time the industry should be making strides to improve equine safety.

"We are committed to doing what is best to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the horse, the integrity of our sport, the fairness of competition, and the best interest of the bettors and the fans. We will continue to work collectively to enact impactful reforms," Foreman said. "We believe that the industry's total focus and priority right now should be determining the causes of racehorse breakdowns and fatalities and implementing protocols to reduce or eliminate them. Banning furosemide will have no effect on the breakdown rate."

Foreman noted that after years of effort to bring uniformity in medication rules to North American racing, the tracks' proposed policy would create a lack of uniformity from track to track.

Nevertheless, the proposal has the support of Breeders' Cup, the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders' Association, and the American Graded Stakes Committee of TOBA, as well as the Kentucky Thoroughbred Association.

Under the new program, beginning Jan. 1, 2020, 2-year-olds would not be allowed to be treated with Lasix within 24 hours of a race. Beginning in 2021, the same prohibition would extend to all horses in listed or stakes races at coalition tracks. Accordingly, in 2021 the races comprising the Triple Crown would all be run under the new rules regarding race-day medication.

Ed Martin, president of the Association of Racing Commissioners International, said the tracks likely will face legal and operational issues in putting the policies in place. He noted that it's unclear, logistically, how racetracks will enforce the policies. Because the rules would be put in place as house rules, the regulator would not be responsible to carry out tests for race-day Lasix.

"There's a huge question on if the tracks would set up a duplicate drug-testing program for testing for substances different than the regulatory body," Martin said.

There are potential legal issues. In 2015, the Kentucky attorney general issued an opinion that the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission acted beyond its authority when it passed a rule that would have allowed state tracks to offer Lasix-free racing. Keeneland sought to offer such races in 2016. The then-Kentucky attorney general determined, basically, that if Lasix is allowed in some races in the state, it needs to be allowed in all races. 

At today's Illinois Racing Board meeting, commissioner Shelley Kalia, the IRB's former general counsel, said Illinois tracks do not have the authority to unilaterally impose a ban on Lasix. She said it would require board action. 

The 20 tracks planning to put the changes in place represent 10 states: Arkansas, California, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, and Texas.

Martin noted that in California when The Stronach Group came to the California Horse Racing Board with new medication rules—including a policy on Lasix—the track owner had an agreement in place with the Thoroughbred Owners of California. He said when regulators see disagreement between tracks and horsemen, they're less inclined to change policy.

In seeing the tracks' desire to move toward international standards, Martin noted that North American regulators have not been included in shaping standards endorsed by the International Federation of Horse Racing Authorities. He said that while ARCI members oversee more than 40,000 races a year, their IFHA membership is limited to an advisory, non-voting role.

Foreman said that while the tracks did reach out to the New York THA, none of his other horsemen's groups was included in shaping the proposed Lasix policy. Eric Hamelback, CEO of the National Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, said his organization was left out of the conversation, and Martin said no state regulators were included.

"I have no doubt that everyone in horse racing has a shared goal of keeping our human and equine performers safe and healthy. However, I am disturbed and mystified by the announced initiative by the coalition of racetracks to phase out the use of the anti-bleeder medication furosemide in all 2-year-old racing at their tracks in 2020 and all stakes races in 2021," Hamelback said. "Many of us in the industry strongly believe that it is reckless to unilaterally suggest a policy change that directly impacts horses' welfare without first consulting veterinary leadership or the horsemen's representatives."

Appelbaum hopes horsemen are included in equine safety conversations going forward.

"The racetrack operators have stated that this is the first step in continuing cooperation on safety and welfare issues," Appelbaum said. "We hope this is just the beginning of a collaborative conversation and challenge them to immediately adopt nationwide the recommendations contained in the 2012 New York Task Force Report on Race Horse Health and Safety and to provide funding and staff for an expedited implementation of the 2019 Mid-Atlantic Strategic Plan to Reduce Equine Fatalities."

The New York Task Force emphasized that veterinary oversight should be the job of the regulatory vets and not the racetrack vets. It emphasizes the importance of pre-race inspections and called on developing protocols to identify at-risk horses. Those standards have been developed in some jurisdictions. Among the objectives listed in the Mid-Atlantic Strategic Plan to Reduce Equine Fatalities is developing a metric to document the incidence of training fatalities, increased education of horsemen, and development of best practices to reduce the risk of equine injury.

Citing the efforts of The Stronach Group and TOC in California, Stronach said collaboration will be needed to bring the policies to reality.

"This work has not been easy as we have learned firsthand in California, but it is impactful and imperative to crystallize the future of this sport in this country. At Santa Anita Park and Golden Gate Fields, we are on track to be aligned with medication standards consistent with, or more restrictive than, those of the (IFHA), which are the world's benchmark for horse safety and welfare," Stronach said. "While we have paved the way in working with the Thoroughbred Owners of California and the CHRB to make changes here in the state, national collaboration is necessary in order to truly evolve the sport.

"The desire to achieve uniform policies is the beginning of a movement that will redefine the expectations and views on safety within our sport. I applaud all our partners and look forward to continued swift and strong collaboration." 

Jeff Platt, president of the Horseplayers Association of North America, said his group has not yet formulated an opinion on the tracks' announced changes, but he noted that in every poll the organization has conducted, membership has opposed race-day medication by about a 70%-30% margin. Beyond that, he said he's conducted unofficial polls through social media that have found the general public is even more opposed to race-day medication. 

In supporting the planned Lasix rules, Keeneland president and CEO Bill Thomason noted the changes would bring the U.S. in line with international standards in those potentially breed-shaping races.

"This new program is an essential step as we look toward the long-term sustainability of U.S.-breds on the national and international stages," Thomason said. "Protecting the integrity of our sport is core to our mission and is our collective responsibility to the industry."

On the track, multiple Eclipse Award-winning trainer Todd Pletcher appreciates that the plan includes some time for horsemen to adjust.

"It's a little too early to get a line on what the impact will be. I'm sure it will be significant, but only time will tell," Pletcher said. "Any time you put people in position where they have time to prepare, it's a good thing. Like any industry, you always have to look for ways to improve, and I'm for anything that's for the good of the sport."

Hamelback and Appelbaum agreed that if the policies are put in place, horsemen will adjust.

"While the outcome of this initiative won't be clear for many years, NYTHA represents the most talented horsemen in the world, and we will work diligently to rise to the challenge of managing EIPH while maintaining the health and welfare of our horses," Appelbaum said.

In its release, the coalition racing organizations invited other North American racetracks to join the effort and adopt the same policies. Participating tracks include NYRA's Aqueduct Racetrack, Belmont Park, and Saratoga Race Course; CDI's Arlington International Racecourse, Churchill Downs, Presque Isle Downs, and Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots; and The Stronach Group's Gulfstream Park, Gulfstream Park West, Laurel Park, Pimlico Race Course, Golden Gate Fields and Santa Anita Park. (The latter two will continue to run under the previously announced limitations to race-day medication.)

Major tracks currently not participating include those owned by Penn National Gaming Inc. and Monmouth Park. A PNGI representative did not immediately return a phone call Thursday, and horsemen-owned Monmouth issued a release stating it will not put the new standards in place. Dennis Drazin, chairman and CEO of Darby Development, which operates Monmouth for the horsemen, noted that the American Association of Equine Practitioners has supported race-day Lasix.

"Until further scientific evidence proves otherwise, we believe the policy set forth by the AAEP regarding the race-day use of furosemide is in the best interest and welfare of the horses and their riders," Drazin said. "We will continue to support that policy beginning with our opening day of racing for the season on May 4."

Congressman Andy Barr, a Kentucky Republican who has introduced federal legislation that calls for racing to eliminate race-day medication, supported the tracks' plan.

"As co-chairman of the Congressional Horse Caucus and as a long-standing advocate for medication uniformity and integrity in horse racing, I applaud the coalition of Thoroughbred racing associations and organizations who today announced the phasing out of the use of Lasix within 24 hours of all stakes races," Barr said. "This historic announcement aligns with legislation I introduced with my colleague, Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.), which would establish a non-governmental anti-doping authority charged with the responsibility of implementing and enforcing a national uniform medication program with input from industry stakeholders. The announcement also signals the industry's willingness to begin harmonizing its rules with international standards. I look forward to working with this coalition to continue our efforts to reinforce the public's confidence in the safety and integrity of the sport."