RCI Adjusts MMV Points, Expands OOC Testing Rule

When the newest version of the Association of Racing Commissioners International Model Rules are published, they will contain important modifications as it relates to multiple medication violation (MMV) points and will also include amended language for out-of-competition testing.

Under the new revisions, points will remain the same for the more severe violations of medication and anti-doping rules, i.e. substances which qualify for Class A or B penalties, but points will be reduced for Class C violations and will be eliminated altogether for Class D penalties. The modifications were approved by a near-unanimous vote of the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC).

“The MMV system is working, perhaps too well for some,” said ARCI President Ed Martin. “By revising this rule, we not only focus the system on those who consistently violate the medication and anti-doping rules that most affect the sport, but we address a legal issue that has precluded more widespread official adoption,” Martin added.

ARCI regulators working with RMTC industry members developed the system which was implemented Jan. 1, 2014 after controversial debate the previous summer. The system is modeled after the approach taken in US federal sentencing guidelines.

This past July, the ARCI tabled action on a revision made by the RMTC to the out-of-competition testing rule based on a need to shore up certain elements of the proposal that may have allowed horses to be shielded from testing. The new language eliminates the previous one-hour notice requirement, the ability to delay sampling for 24 hours and language that has heretofore prohibited sampling between the hours of 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. The rule as it will be written now allows for testing “at a reasonable time”, language commonly used by administrative agencies conducting warrantless searches. This modification strengthens the legal sustainability of the rule while avoiding the creation of “safe harbors.”

The ARCI has also adopted a Prohibited List to clarify restrictions already contained in its Model Rules and Uniform Classification Document. A therapeutic use restriction has been created for some legal medications, and depending on the medication in question, certain restrictions may apply beyond documentation in vet records and formal prescription. Certain Anabolic Androgenic Steroids such as boldenone, nandrolone or stanozolol will require pre-filing of a treatment plan. Depending on the substance used by the veterinarian, some horses may be excluded from competition and placed on the vets list for 60 or 180 days.

The new rule stipulates that no drug be administered to a horse except within a valid vet-client-patient relationship between an owner (or designee), a vet and that horse. No drug may be administered without a veterinarian having examined the horse and provided the treatment recommendation.

“It would be in everyone's interest if those desiring an expansion of out-of-competition testing work with individual commissions to ensure that they have the necessary resources to do that,” Martin commented. “That may mean that some organizations may need to refocus their governmental advocacy to specific states as the 2017 budget process unfolds in those states.”