Kudos to the State of New Jersey for passing a concussion safety bill. Governor Christie, accompanied by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Jets owner Woody Johnson and Sen. Richard Codey (D-Essex) signed the bill into law. Now, student athletes that suffer a concussion on the field must be sidelined until they are cleared by a doctor.
There are alot of kids that suffer concussions every year while engaged in sport. I don’t know how many of them go on to suffer a debilitating brain injury or die, but does that statistic really matter? Isn’t the brain an important enough organ to warrant a little extra caution and care? I think so.
Which gets me to my next point. I’m not sure why this bill didn’t include the same safeguards for student athletes that faint or collapse on the field. We know that fainting is the PRIMARY warning sign of sudden cardiac arrest. We know that kids are fainting and/or passing out regularly while engaged in strenuous sport. We know that thousands of kids die every year from sudden cardiac arrest.
Shouldn’t they be required to seek clearance too before they can return to their sport? Isn’t the heart an important enough organ to warrant a little extra caution and care?
I applaud the brain injury lobby on their monumental efforts to get this legislation passed. I hope that the sudden cardiac arrest lobby can unite and do the same.
