Congress Looking into Sports Concussions

Congress, with the support of the NFL, recently re-introduced legislation to set minimum safety standards for concussion management in public schools, according to .

Bishop’s legislation, “The Protecting Student Athletes from Concussions Act,” has the support of a coalition of Bishop’s colleagues on the House Education and Workforce Committee including the panel's Ranking Member, George Miller of California.

The legislation builds on action in Washington, Oregon, and other states to help reduce the risk of concussions in youth sports by asking school districts across the country to implement a concussion safety and management plan, according to a release by Bishop’s camp. The NFL has endorsed the legislation and is working on similar protocols for their players.

“Concussions are an unfortunate reality of competitive sports from the sandlot to the Super Bowl,” Bishop said in a statement. “This legislation will raise awareness of this very prevalent injury among high-schoolers, help teachers identify the subtle warning signs of concussion in classroom performance, and provide guidance for parents and coaches on when it is safe for a concussed student athlete to return to the playing field.”

What does this legislation call for?

• That individual school districts design plans to educate students, parents, and school personnel about concussion safety and how to support students recovering from concussions.  
• Schools also must post information about concussions on school grounds and on school websites, and are encouraged to implement a “when in doubt, sit it out” policy for students suspected of sustaining a concussion during a school-sponsored athletic activity.

"The Protecting Student Athletes from Concussion Act represents a strong step forward in our shared goal of protecting young male and female athletes in all sports from the risks of concussion and other brain injuries.  The NFL is pleased to support Congressman Bishop's important legislation", said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in a statement.

concurs with Bishop and Goodell.

“I agree with the need to educate all parties involved with youth sports and how important it is to properly identify head injuries and when to properly and safely return athletes to competition,” Blieberg said.

Sachem is ahead of the curve since it began working with the program last year.

“We educated athletes and their parents, properly identified head injuries, had kids clinically checked out and followed a prescribed formula to safely return kids to competition,” Blieberg said. “The days of ‘toughing it out’ are over and the health and welfare of our student/athletes has always been the most important aspect of our interscholastic program, but now with Congressman Bishop’s bill, everyone involved will have to conform to this policy which is a great thing for young adults involved in interscholastic sports programs.”