Kentucky furosemide phase-out would begin a year later

The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission has revised a proposal to phase-out the raceday use of the anti-bleeding medication furosemide so that the phase-out would begin one year later than the previous version of the rule.

Under the revised rule, raceday furosemide would be prohibited in stakes races for 2-year-olds beginning in 2014, not 2013. The prohibition would be expanded to all stakes races in which 3-year-olds are eligible in 2015, and be expanded to all stakes races in 2016. The rule will be discussed at a racing commission meeting on Wednesday, and several racing officials have said over the past week that the rule has enough support on the commission to pass.

The revision would appear to address a complaint by a Thoroughbred owner and member of the commission, Burr Travis, who said last week during a public hearing that the phase-out would apply to horses that had been bought at yearling auctions this year. Travis said that the rule would therefore penalize “post facto” those people who bought horses with the expectation that they would be able to race as 2-year-olds with furosemide.

If approved, the rule would put Kentucky one year further removed from a phase-out of raceday furosemide in the Breeders’ Cup. Under the rule already approved by the Breeders’ Cup, 2-year-olds will be unable to receive raceday administrations of the drug beginning with this year’s event. The rule will be expanded to races for 3-year-olds in 2013, and all other races in 2014.