Overseeing national, uniform integrity and safety rules for Thoroughbred racing in the U.S.

Responsible Person Requirements

As an Owner, you would serve as the Responsible Person if you were to purchase a horse and register the horse with HISA before it begins training. You will also serve as the Responsible Person if you are between trainers or if your horse is on an extended layup.

In most cases, trainers are considered the Responsible Person under law and must:

• Register Covered Horses in their care;
• Maintain records of medication administration, vaccinations, therapeutic procedures, surgical procedures, and treatments for your horses in their care; and
• Make those records available to regulatory veterinarians, stewards and HISA officials when requested.

The data gleaned from the following record-keeping and reporting categories required under the Racetrack Safety Program will be used to inform regulatory veterinarians’ pre-race inspections of your horses as well as the evolution of HISA’s rules to further enhance equine welfare:

• Health and vaccination records, which must be uploaded to the HISA portal;
• Daily treatment records;
• Daily layup records for horses returning from a layup period of 60 or more days;
• 30 days of offsite treatment records for horses shipping to racetracks from a layup or training at a non-HISA facility; and
• 60 days of treatment and veterinary exam records for claimed horses leaving your care.

Access to this data is restricted to you, regulatory vets, your attending vet(s), relevant state racing commission personnel and your trainer.

Designated Owner Responsibilities

All owners of Covered Horses are required to register with HISA for access to their horse’s records and more. If the horse is owned by more than one person or by an LLC, corporation, stable or partnership, one of the owners must serve as the Designated Owner on the HISA portal. The Designated Owner can then share information with additional owners as long as they are registered.

Anti-Doping and Medication Control (ADMC) Compliance

Under the new national ADMC Program, a uniform list of Prohibited Substances is divided into categories of Banned and Controlled Medication substances and tested at the same levels across the country no matter where you are racing or training. All laboratories will be accredited by HISA and are currently accredited by the RMTC to ensure harmonized testing processes.

The ADMC Program’s uniform prohibited substance classifications, expanded testing protocols, efficient adjudication processes, and consistent penalties that fit the severity of the violation simplify compliance and level the playing field for the vast majority of racing participants who play by the rules.

The Horseracing Integrity and Welfare Unit (HIWU) administers the education, rules and enforcement mechanisms of HISA’s ADMC program. HIWU’s website includes a growing number of educational materials that can be used to familiarize yourself with the new, uniform rules and procedures.