NYSSOS STATEMENT ON GOVERNOR HOCHUL’S SIGNING OF LEGISLATION PROTECTING NON-PUBLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS FROM CONCUSSIONS
By Babette Atkins, NYSSOS Executive Director
“Today, Governor Hochul signed into law legislation (S973/A8425) requiring non-public schools to abide by the Concussion Management Awareness Act of 2011. NYSSOS has been a strong advocate of this legislation.
“Under the new law, non-public schools must now meet the same concussion training and protocol standards as public schools, including: requiring biennial training for coaches, physical education teachers, nurses and athletic trainers on the signs and symptoms of concussions and the guidelines for returning to school; requiring the immediate removal of a student from athletic activities if it is believed they have sustained a mild traumatic brain injury; authorizing schools to establish concussion management teams; and other provisions.
“NYSSOS is grateful to Governor Hochul, Assemblymember Burke, Senator Gaughran and the Legislature for providing these necessary protections for non-public school students.
“While this legislation represents real progress in our efforts to assure students across all educational settings have the protections they deserve, more needs to be done. We look forward to continuing our work with policy makers to afford every reasonable protection possible.”
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About NYSSOS: Representing more than 800 orthopaedists across New York State, NYSSOS advocates for orthopaedic surgeons, patients and musculoskeletal health in New York State. NYSSOS is the orthopaedic community’s primary source of information and expertise concerning: legislative/regulatory advocacy (local, state and federal levels); practice trends and change; leadership training for national, state, and local issues and opportunities; assistance with establishing and maintaining a practice; and familiarity with state practice guidelines impacting the profession and patient care. Learn more at www.nyssos.org
