Debbie Miller, director of the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering, announced new guideline for penalties covering Class IV and V drug violations. Class IV and V drugs are therapeutic medications, not performance enhancing drugs. Under previous rules and regulations owners found to be using the drugs would have to forfeit purse money and trainers could be suspended for up to 30 days. Under the new guidelines, the state’s Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Greyhound stewards are instructed to implement less harsh rules than previously administered.

The new guidelines eliminate owners having to forfeit purse money, and the suspension of a trainer’s license is up to the discretion of the stewards. Gulfstream Park association steward Charlie Camac said, “I think this is a step in the right direction. The next step is for the state to drop all testing on sulphur-based medication. The division seems to be going in the right direction.”