University of Florida Lab Gets RMTC Accreditation

Officials at the Racing Medication and Testing Consortium (RMTC) have announced that the University of Florida Racing Laboratory (UFRL) has been granted interim accreditation at its Feb. 13 at Gulfstream Park. It is poised to become the 10th racing lab to receive full accreditation from the RMTC. UFRL performs testing on Thoroughbred, Quarter Horse and Standardbred samples for the Florida Division of Pari-Mutuel Wagering.

“The addition of the Florida Racing Laboratory marks a milestone in the RMTC accreditation program, as we are now very close to full RMTC accreditation of every horse racing testing laboratory in the United States,” said RMTC Executive Director Dr. Dionne Benson. “The addition of the Florida laboratory would not have been possible without support and assistance from The Stronach Group, the Florida HBPA, the Florida Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders, the Florida Division of Pari-mutuel Wagering and the University of Florida Racing Laboratory's leadership.”

Prior to the creation of the RMTC Accreditation Program, there were nearly 20 laboratories performing horse racing testing in the United States–many without any type of accreditation. Since that time, much of the laboratory work has been consolidated. Today, there are just 13 laboratories performing horse racing testing in the United States–10 of which are now RMTC Accredited or Interim Accredited.

RMTC Accredited Laboratories are required to participate in multiple rounds of quality assurance program testing prior to accreditation and each year after accreditation. The quality assurance program acts as a check on the laboratories to ensure they are able to detect and quantify substances of concern in horse racing.

The only racing jurisdictions that are not utilizing an RMTC Accredited or Interim Accredited laboratory are Louisiana (Thoroughbred and Quarter Horse), South Dakota (Quarter Horse) and Delaware (Harness only).

“RMTC Accreditation ensures that laboratories can consistently and reliably detect a wide variety of substances at low concentrations, which is a key to providing a racing product in the U.S. that is safe and fair,” explained RMTC Chair Alex Waldrop. “The progress of the RMTC Laboratory Accreditation Program underscores the effectiveness of the RMTC in promoting laboratory proficiency and uniformity across the racing industry.”