Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association
Posted: Sept. 19, 2016
The New York Drug Testing Laboratory has been fully accredited by the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium’s Horseracing Testing Laboratory Committee, RMTC officials said in early September.
The NYDTL performs drug testing for Thoroughbred and Standardbred racing as regulated by the New York State Gaming Commission. With the addition of the New York lab, RMTC-accredited labs are responsible for the testing of samples for 28 of the 34 pari-mutuel racing jurisdictions in the United States.
Lab accreditation is part of the National Uniform Medication Program.
“We applaud the New York laboratory for its effort to meet the RMTC laboratory accreditation standards for expertise and proficiency,” said Alex Waldrop, RMTC chairman and president of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association. “RMTC accreditation is an important step in creating a safe and level playing field for all racing participants.”
States that employ RMTC-accredited labs are Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.
Each laboratory that earns RMTC accreditation has first been ISO 17025 certified, which is the international standard for analytical laboratories. They must also submit an application that is reviewed by an independent auditor; successfully complete a multi-day laboratory site inspection with an internationally recognized expert in the field; and pass two rounds of the RMTC external quality assurance program proficiency sample testing, which measures the ability of the laboratory to identify, detect and quantify substances of concern in horse racing.