Blood-Horse The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission March 23 approved plans by Kentucky Downs to change the brand of its historical racing machines. In April Kentucky Downs plans to change its current historical racing machines, currently the Cella family's Instant Racing games, to a new player in the market called Encore Gaming. In a February release, [...]

Blood-Horse Legislation has been introduced in both houses of the New York legislature, which would require the owners of a future commercial casino to make whole any losses suffered by horsemen and breeders at nearby Finger Lakes Gaming & Racetrack, because of the expected competitive hit the upstate track is facing. If approved, the legislation [...]

Blood-Horse The Ontario Racing Commission said March 20 it will begin developing a "practical and appropriate response" for testing for the mineral cobalt, which is endogenous to the horse but believed to have blood-doping effects when administered in large doses. The ORC, which governs Thoroughbred, Standardbred, and Quarter Horse racing in the province, said it [...]

RCI COLUMBUS, Ohio - In remarks made before the Board of Directors of the United States Trotting Association this past weekend, Association of Racing Commissioners International (RCI) President Ed Martin indicated that he expected regulators would set a uniform approach on cobalt when they meet in Tampa, Florida, at meetings held April 21-23, 2015. Martin [...]

Blood-Horse The Kentucky Horse Racing Commission is considering a proposal that would permit the state's racetracks to card races that would prohibit the administration of furosemide, also known as Salix or Lasix, within 24 hours of post time. Under the proposal, the commission would adopt a new administrative regulation that "authorizes licensed racing associations to [...]

Blood-Horse The Jockeys' Guild has reached an agreement with Parx Racing, resolving their dispute in a manner that will not alter the current on-track accident policy at the Pennsylvania track. After discussions between the parties March 18, all jockeys will continue to be covered by the $1 million on-track accident insurance policy both in the [...]

Blood-Horse With the large concentration of graded stakes scheduled for spring and summer, The Jockey Club is reminding regulatory authorities and racetracks that it has budgeted another $250,000 in grants for out-of-competition testing to supplement the efforts of racetracks. The Jockey Club said the funding is designed to encourage more out-of-competition testing for the presence [...]

Blood-Horse Legislation for the fiscal 2016 state budget in West Virginia is calling for another reduction in video lottery terminal and table games revenue that goes to purses at Thoroughbred and Greyhound tracks. Last summer, in the final hours of a special session, the legislature shifted 10% of revenue that goes to purses to pay [...]

Louisville Courier-Journal The controversial question of whether horses should not receive medication on days they race — as is the rule in most of the world except North America — is about to be a battle again for the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission. The commission, which dropped prior efforts to ban race-day medication in certain [...]

Blood-Horse The Illinois Racing Board March 17 approved a drastically reduced stakes schedule for the summer meeting at Arlington International Racecourse, putting five graded events "on hiatus." But the Illinois Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association argued the cuts in stakes purses are not deep enough, given the hard economic times facing the state's industry. ITHA executive director [...]