Litigation

New Jersey enacts youth sports concussion law

By Michael Kaplen

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie today signed legislation to protect and prevent concussions in student-athletes participating in New Jersey interscholastic youth sports programs.

The bill adopts a multi-faceted approach, requiring the Department of Education (DOE) to develop an interscholastic athletic head injury safety training program to be completed by school physicians, coaches and athletic trainers of public and nonpublic school interscholastic sports programs. 

The program that will be developed by the Department of Education will include the recognition of symptoms of head and neck injuries, and will address the appropriate amount of time a student-athlete must wait before returning to sports competition or practice after sustaining an injury.  In addition, it will help ensure that school physicians, coaches and athletic trainers are properly trained to be able to identify a concussion as well as utilize the proper response during interscholastic sporting events.  Currently, there is no uniform method of handling suspected concussions in interscholastic sports.

Furthermore, each school district, with the assistance of DOE, will be required to develop a written policy concerning the prevention and treatment of sports-related concussions and other head injuries among student-athletes.  A student-athlete who sustains or is suspected of having sustained, a concussion or head injury, will be removed immediately from the sporting event and will not be permitted to participate in further sports activity until he is evaluated and cleared by a physician or other properly licensed and trained healthcare provider. 

Licensed athletic directors will now be required to complete certain continuing education requirements, and these credits must include instruction on topics relating to concussions and head injuries.  This will ensure that licensed athletic trainers are adequately trained in the area of concussions and head injury.  Currently, licensed athletic trainers have no continuing education requirements. 

Full post as published by Brain Injury News and Information on December 07, 2010 (boomark / email).