Thoroughbred Horsemen's Association
Posted: June 29, 2017
Ten United States laboratories that test samples taken from racehorses in 31 of 34 racing jurisdictions applied for lab accreditation through the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium, and nine are now accredited.
Labs that have successfully completed two rounds of proficiency testing and have passed an on-site inspection are the UC-Davis Kenneth L. Maddy Analytical Chemistry Laboratory in California; LGC Science in Kentucky; Ohio Department of Agriculture; Truesdail Laboratories in California; Industrial Laboratories in Colorado; Pennsylvania Equine Toxicology and Research Laboratory; Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Research Laboratory; New York Drug Testing and Research Program; and University of Chicago Illinois at Chicago Analytical Forensic Testing Laboratory.
The 10th lab, The University of Florida Racing Laboratory, recently submitted its application for RMTC accreditation. Lab accreditation is one of the four major components of the National Uniform Medication Program.
The labs that are accredited or have applied for accreditation have testing contracts in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming, and Puerto Rico.
The RMTC in its update also noted that as of June, 13 of the 14 U.S. testing labs are ISO 17025-accredited. Before the launch of the RMTC Drug Testing Initiatives Task Force near the end of 2008, only five of the labs had such accreditation from the International Organization for Standardization.
Along with the 10 labs that have applied for or have RMTC accreditation, the Iowa Racing Chemistry Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Center for TOX Services, and Dalare Associates also have ISO 17025 accreditation.
Louisiana State University, which handles equine drug testing for horse racing in the state, is pursuing ISO 17025 accreditation, which is a prerequisite for RMTC accreditation, officials said.