Law Aimed at Preventing Athletes with Concussions from Playing

Law Aimed at Preventing Athletes with Concussions from Playing

The Rhode Island House yesterday passed a bill intended on preventing school athletes with concussions or other head injuries from returning to play too soon.

The bill calls for new guidelines that would help coaches, parents, and athletes identify possible concussions and requires that players don’t get back into the game until they’ve been examined by a doctor or other medical professional.

“Hopefully most parents and coaches would already make sure athletes get medical attention before returning to play when they’ve had a head injury, but it’s not enough to hope,” said state Sen. Walter Felag a Democrat, who represents Warren, Bristol and Tiverton. “It’s the nature of athletes, even in high school or middle school, to want to get back in the game, and coaches have to know when to say no and make them see a doctor.”

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The bill, which passed the Senate last week, is now headed to Gov. Don Carcieri.