The University of California, Davis, Kenneth L. Maddy Laboratory and HFL Sport Science in Lexington, Ky., became the first two fully accredited laboratories under the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) Laboratory Accreditation program June 11.

In addition to granting full accreditation to those laboratories, the RMTC Horseracing Testing Laboratories Committee also recommended the Ohio Department of Agriculture for interim accreditation status. The initial review and External Quality Assurance Program (EQAP) requirements are awaiting a site inspection from RMTC.

"The accreditation of these two laboratories marks the culmination of many months of effort by each of these laboratories to demonstrate that they meet the strict standards of expertise and proficiency required by the program," said Robert Lewis, DVM, chairman of the RMTC board. "The accreditation process is an important step forward in protecting the welfare of our equine and human athletes as well as the integrity of horse racing."

Lewis said five other laboratories have applied for RMTC laboratory accreditation: Truesdail Laboratory (Tustin, Calif.), Dalare Associates (Philadelphia, Pa.), New York Drug Testing and Research Program (Morrisville, N.Y.), Pennsylvania Equine Toxicology and Research Laboratory (West Chester, Pa.), and Industrial Laboratories (Wheat Ridge, Colo.) The eight laboratories that have applied for RMTC accreditation represent 26 of the 34 jurisdictions responsible for pari-mutuel horse racing in the United States