In a development that figures to play out in other racing states, two New York senators said June 12 the anti-bleeding medication furosemide should not be banned on race day.

The release came from Republican Sens. Jack Martins, who represents Mineola, and Roy McDonald, whose district includes Saratoga Springs. It includes a comment from the president of the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (THA), which opposes a ban on furosemide, also called Salix or Lasix.

"The welfare of the racehorse should be the first and most important concern for anyone involved in the Thoroughbred racing industry," McDonald said. "Making a change to race-day medications, specifically banning the use of Lasix to prevent exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhaging, could have dangerous results.

"It would be unconscionable to make any horse more vulnerable to a condition that could potentially place the horse and rider into a fatal situation