Utah Admin. Code 52-7-13

Current through Bulletin 2024-23, December 1, 2024

Section R52-7-13 - Prohibited Practices

1. No person may have or use a drug, substance, or medication on the premises of a facility under the jurisdiction of the Commission if:

A. a recognized analytical method has not been developed to detect and confirm the administration of the substance;

B. the use of the substance may endanger the health or welfare of the horse or endanger the safety of the rider;

C. the use of the substance may adversely affect the integrity of racing; or

D. no generally accepted use of the substance in equine care exists.

2. Prohibited Substances and Methods. The Commission incorporates by reference, a list of prohibited substances and methods of administration contained in the following matrices maintained by the department: Prohibited Substances and Controlled Therapeutic Medication Schedule for Horses.

A. The substances and methods listed in the Prohibited List may not be used, and may not be possessed on the premises of a racing or training facility under the jurisdiction of the Commission, except as a restricted therapeutic use.

B. The equipment and supplies necessary for official testing, shall be provided by the organization.

3. Restricted Therapeutic Use. A limited number of medications on the Prohibited List may be exempted when administration occurs in compliance with required conditions for restricted therapeutic use found in the Utah Horse Racing Commission Controlled Therapeutic Medication Schedule for Horses incorporated by reference and maintained by the department.

4. The possession or use of the following substances or of blood doping agents, including those listed in this section, on the premises of a facility under the jurisdiction of the Commission is forbidden:

A. Aminoimidazole carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR);

B. Darbepoetin;

C. Equine Growth Hormone;

D. Erythropietin;

E. Hemopure, registered trademark;

F. Myo-Inositol Trispyprophosphate (ITPP);

G. Oxyglobin,registered trademark;

H. Thymosin beta;

I. Venoms or its derivatives; or

J. Thymosin beta.

5. Other Prohibited Substances. Substances in the categories in this section shall be strictly prohibited unless otherwise provided in accordance with state law or Commission rule including:

A. a pharmacologic substance that is not approved by any governmental regulatory health authority for human or veterinary use within the jurisdiction, including:

a. a drug under pre-clinical or clinical development;

b. a discontinued drug; or

c. a designer drug.

(1) A designer drug is a synthetic analog of a drug that has been altered in a manner that may reduce its detection.

(2) Designer drugs do not include:

i. vitamins, herbs, and supplements used for nutritional purposes that do not contain any other prohibited substance; or

ii. the administration of a substance with the earlier approval of the Commission in a clinical trial for which an FDA or similar exemption has been obtained;

B. anabolic agents and Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS);

C. peptide hormones, growth factors, and related substances including any substance with similar chemical structure or similar biological effects;

D. beta-2 agonists, including optical isomers, including d-and l-, where relevant;

E. hormone and metabolic modulators; or

F. diuretics and other masking agents, including substances with similar chemical structure or similar biological effects.

6. Prohibited methods of manipulation of blood and blood components include:

A. the administration or reintroduction of any quantity of autologous, allogenic, or heterologous blood or red blood cell products of any origin into the circulatory system;

B. artificially enhancing the uptake, transport, or delivery of oxygen, including perfluorochemicals, efaproxiral (RSR13), and modified hemoglobin products, hemoglobin-based blood substitutes, microencapsulated hemoglobin products, excluding supplemental oxygen; or

C. tampering, or attempting to tamper, to alter the integrity and validity of samples collected by authority of the Commission. Tampering methods include blood serum or urine substitution or adulteration, such as proteases.

7. Any reference to substances in Section R52-7-13 does not alter the requirements for testing concentrations in race day samples or the requirements of post-race testing.

A. If laboratory testing detects any prohibited substance identified by this rule, the finding shall be reported as a violation. Upon a finding of violation, the horse shall be disqualified, and the owner of the horse shall not participate in any portion of the purse, stakes, trophy, or any other award.

B. Any purse, stakes, trophy, or award shall be returned if it was presented to the owner of the horse, upon the finding of a violation of this section.

C. Any positive test for a prohibited drug, medication, or substance, including permitted medication in excess of the maximum allowable concentration, as reported by a Commission-approved laboratory, is prima facie evidence of a violation of this rule.

D. It is presumed that any sample or accepted specimen tested by an approved laboratory is from the horse in question. With regard to an accepted sample, it is also presumed that:

a. the integrity of the sample is preserved;

b. any procedures, collection, preservation, and analysis of the sample are correct and accurate; and

c. it is the burden of the owner, trainer, assistant trainer, or other responsible party to prove by substantial evidence to the contrary in the matter to the administrative stewards or at the Commission hearing.

8. Penalties. Upon finding a violation of these medications and prohibited substances rules, the Stewards shall:

A. consider the classification level of the violation as listed when in the Uniform Classification Guidelines of Foreign Substances, as promulgated in the following penalty matrices maintained by the department that are incorporated by reference: Recommended Penalties for Doping or Equine Endangerment Violations, and 2019-08 Recommended Penalties by Substances;

B. impose penalties and disciplinary measures consistent with the recommendations contained therein; and

C. consult with the Official Veterinarian to determine if the violation was a result of the administration of a therapeutic medication as documented in a veterinarian's Medication Report Form received, pursuant to Subsection R52-7-8(7).

9. The Stewards may also consult with the laboratory director or other individuals to determine the seriousness of the laboratory finding or the medication violation. Penalties for medication and drug violations shall be investigated and reviewed on a case -by -case basis.

Extenuating factors the Stewards may consider in determining penalties include:

a. the past record of the trainer, veterinarian and owner in drug cases;

b. the potential of the drug to influence a horse's racing performance;

c. the legal availability of the drug;

d. whether the responsible party knew or should have known of the administration of the drug, or intentionally administered the drug;

e. the steps taken by the trainer to safeguard the horse;

f. the purse of the race; and

g. whether the licensed trainer was acting on the advice of a licensed veterinarian.

10. As a result of an investigation, there may be mitigating circumstances for which a lesser or no penalty is appropriate for the licensee, or aggravating factors that may increase the penalty beyond the minimum.

Utah Admin. Code R52-7-13

Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2017-7, effective 3/6/2017

Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2020-16, effective 8/10/2020

Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2021-09, effective 4/12/2021

Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2022-05, effective 2/23/2022