Members of Congress April 30 heard of problems in the Thoroughbred racing industry–most of them related to equine medication–but stopped short of a full endorsement of federal intervention.

Eight individuals, including three prominent owners, testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Health during a two and a half hour hearing at Unionville High School near Kennett Square, Pa. The witnesses all said they don’t believe race-day medication has a place in Thoroughbred racing.

"It’s one thing to use drugs therapeutically after a race, but another thing to use them to mask (other drugs) during a race," said Gretchen Jackson, who with her husband, Roy, owned Kentucky Derby (gr. I) winner Barbaro.

"If there is no race-day medication, it would solve a lot of problems in racing," said retired jockey Gary Stevens, now a racing broadcaster

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.