The state of California has approved rules establishing that race-day medication must be administered by independent veterinary professionals, further aligning California with the national uniform medication program.

The California Office of Administrative Law advised the California Horse Racing Board (CHRB) on June 1 that amendments to CHRB Rules 1433 and 1845, which the Board approved in April, have passed review and can now go into effect, with full implementation expected later this year.

California joins 20 states across the nation that have adopted the policy governing third-party furosemide (marketed as Salix and also referred to as Lasix), which was developed by the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium and is a key component of the National Uniform Medication Policy promulgated by the Association of Racing Commissioners International.

Furosemide will be the only authorized bleeder medication and the only medication that can be administered to horses on the day they race. It must be administered by Board-approved independent veterinarians within certain timeframes, methods, and doses, and the syringes used for those injections will be retained for future analysis as needed. Other requirements and restrictions imposed by the new rules will further improve race-day security