Big Changes To WWE Wellness Policy

As reported earlier, World Wrestling Entertainment issued a statement announcing changes to their Wellness Policy Program. They have added new drugs to the list of banned substances in the program, specifically Anti-estrogens. Anti-estrogen drugs such as Anastrozole are used to mask the effects of steroid use such as the growth of breast tissue.

According to Sports Illustrated in a report last August, a number of WWE wrestlers were caught purchasing the drug through Signature Pharmacy, an online pharmacy that was raided last year for selling steroids and other drugs to people without being examined by doctors. Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, Chavo Guerrero, John Morrison, Mr. Kennedy, Charlie Haas and William Regal were revealed to have purchased shipments of Anastrozole through Signature Pharmacy by Sports Illustrated.

In another Wellness Policy change, WWE has hired Dr. Joseph Maroon as the program's Medical Director. According to their statement, "He will coordinate a team of physicians and medical personnel for program implementation." Additionally, pre-contract cardiovascular, drug screening and physical exams are mandatory for all potential new WWE performers according to the statement. The statement also talks about offering free drug treatment to former WWE performers. More than 500 letters were sent out to former WWE stars last September. Thus far, over a dozen former WWE performers have taken up their offer. However, only four have been made public in Scott Hall, Sean "X-Pac" Waltman, Ron Simmons and Jake "The Snake" Roberts. You can read the complete statement regarding the Wellness Policy changes by clicking here.

Also, they specifically state "performer" and not "wrestler" for a reason. The drug testing isn't only limited to the wrestlers. Everyone who performs on television is considered to be a performer, including announcers and referees. It doesn't matter whether you're Lilian Garcia, Marty Elias, Ranjin Singh, Vickie Guerrero, Mike Adamle, Lena Yada or Ezekiel, they have to take the tests just like the wrestlers too.

The statement also noted that "more than 30 suspensions have been issued" since the start of WWE's Wellness Program, which is indeed true. A total of 37 suspensions involving 30 WWE performers have been issued throughout the program's history. For anyone wondering about those 30+ suspensions, here is the list of the history of the program's drug offenders (at least that became public knowledge):

- Randy Orton
- Joey Mercury
- Rene Dupree (two-time offender)
- Kurt Angle
- Rob Van Dam (due to a drug possession arrest)
- Kid Kash
- Ryan Reeves
- Ryan O'Reilly
- Balls Mahoney
- Drew "Festus" Hankinson
- Andrew "Test" Martin
- referee Chris Kay (two-time offender, later fired)
- Jeff Hardy (two-time offender)
- Chavo Guerrero (two-time offender)
- Chris Masters (two-time offender, later fired)
- Edge
- Funaki
- Gregory Helms
- Booker T (two-time offender)
- Charlie Haas
- Mr. Kennedy
- Umaga
- William Regal (two-time offender)
- John Morrison
- Gene Snitsky
- Harry "DH" Smith
- Derrick Neikirk (later fired)
- Neil "Chet the Jet" Bzibziak (later fired)
- Afa, Jr. (for attempting to cheat a drug test back in February or March with a realistic prosthetic penis, which forced WWE to change the testing procedure by making the dropping of a performer's trousers below the knees in front of a doctor mandatory in all future drug tests)
- Jimmy Wang Yang