updated 5:23 p.m. ET July 14, 2005

LEXINGTON, Ky. - The issue of workers’ compensation insurance for jockeys and other backside workers at racetracks is a “powder keg” that will require much research and careful thought, an insurance broker told a panel studying the topic.

A resolution can be reached, but first “an unbelievably difficult financial problem” must be solved, John Unick of San Francisco said during an open forum Thursday at the Kentucky Horse Park.

The problem is determining who will pay for a workers’ compensation program, said Tom Ludt, a member of the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority and the chairman of the panel named by Gov. Ernie Fletcher to research the issue. Fletcher has given the panel a Sept. 1 deadline to develop a proposal to solve the problem.

“Everyone wants to see it addressed, but no one will come forward with a public funding proposal,” Ludt said after the meeting. “No one wants to take it on.”

Jockeys want owners and racetracks to foot the bill for expanded workers’ compensation coverage, while others in the industry favor jockeys contributing a portion of the cost.

The issue of insurance — particularly for jockeys — has been contentious in recent months.

In November, a dispute over jockeys’ insurance resulted in 14 riders being banned from Churchill Downs in Louisville and a one-night rider boycott at Churchill-owned Hoosier Park near Indianapolis.

In February, Kentucky’s thoroughbred tracks agreed to obtain insurance policies offering up to $1 million in coverage for injured jockeys as a temporary measure until a long-term proposal could be presented to state legislators next year. Previously, the tracks offered a $100,000 policy for jockeys, who could purchase additional coverage themselves.

The panel heard Thursday from four active or retired jockeys, including Hall of Fame rider Chris McCarron and Tony D’Amico, who broke a collarbone and ribs and punctured a lung Nov. 3 as a result of a fall at Churchill Downs.

Also speaking were executives from industry organizations including the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association, the Kentucky Quarter Horse Racing Association and the Kentucky Harness Horsemen’s Association.

Unick, who put together a workers’ compensation plan for jockeys at California tracks, called the issue “unbelievably complex” and said the “the entire industry almost collapsed” in that state because of the situation.

“If Kentucky truly bands together and works on this issue and understands compromise, this thing will work itself out,” Unick said. “California was 10 times worse.”

He said coverage of exercise riders, not just jockeys, should be included in any plan.

Some Kentucky racetracks, including Keeneland in Lexington and Churchill Downs, require trainers who apply for stalls to show proof that they carry workers’ compensation insurance for any employees. But many jockeys and exercise riders aren’t employed by a specific trainer — they are independent contractors and thus aren’t covered.

Because they are independent contractors, jockeys should be required to help pay for any workers’ compensation insurance plan, TOBA President Dan Metzger said. Any insurance plan “must be part of a broader review of the jockey compensation model,” he said.

A panel formed by the National Thoroughbred Racing Association also recommended the cost of additional health insurance for jockeys be split between the riders and racetracks, said NTRA senior vice president for marketing and industry relations Keith Chamblin, who led the panel.

The Jockeys’ Guild criticized that recommendation.

Rodney Prescott, a jockey who has ridden in more than 1,100 races this year — the most of any rider in the nation — said that most simply can’t afford to pay for extra insurance.

Of the $156,453 he said he received last year in take-home pay, Prescott said he only actually got to keep $88,413, after paying agents and valets, buying supplies and gas and purchasing insurance.

He said he’s in the top 100 in the nation for jockey earnings, but that there are about 1,300 jockeys across the nation.

“What about those jockeys not in the top 100? I just don’t see how they can pay for it,” he said. “They’re not even making minimum wage.”

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