Protecting Student Athletes from Concussions Act of 2013 - Amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to condition each state's receipt of ESEA funds, beginning in FY2015, on the state having in effect and enforcing a law or regulation that meets the minimum requirements for the prevention and treatment of concussions set forth in this Act.
Requires each local educational agency in the state to develop and implement a standard plan for concussion safety and management for its public schools that includes: (1) the education of students, parents, and school personnel about concussions through specified activities; (2) specified supports for each student recovering from a concussion; and (3) specified best practices designed to ensure the uniformity of safety standards, treatment, and management.
Requires each public school to post on school grounds and make publicly available on the school website specified information on concussions.
Provides that if any public school personnel suspects that a student has sustained a concussion during a school-sponsored activity: (1) the student is to be immediately removed from participation in that activity and prohibited from participating in school-sponsored athletic activities until the student submits a written release from a health care professional; and (2) that individual is to report all available information regarding the student's injury to a concussion management team that will then confirm and report to the student's parents the date, time, and type of the injury suffered by the student and any actions taken to treat the student.
Requires each concussion management team to include a health care professional, the student's parents, other relevant school personnel, and an individual assigned by the public school to oversee and manage the students' recovery.
Requires the school's concussion management team to consult with and make recommendations to relevant school personnel and the student to ensure that the student is receiving the appropriate academic supports, including: (1) periods of cognitive rest over the course of the school day, (2) modified academic assignments, (3) gradual reintroduction to cognitive demands, and (4) other appropriate academic accommodations or adjustments.
[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3532 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3532
To promote State requirements for local educational agencies and public
elementary and secondary schools relating to the prevention and
treatment of concussions suffered by students.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 19, 2013
Mr. Bishop of New York (for himself and Mr. George Miller of
California) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote State requirements for local educational agencies and public
elementary and secondary schools relating to the prevention and
treatment of concussions suffered by students.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Student Athletes From
Concussions Act of 2013''.
SEC. 2. MINIMUM STATE REQUIREMENTS.
Part E of title IX of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7901 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by striking the heading relating to subpart 2 and
inserting the following:
``Subpart 3--Other Provisions'';
and
(2) by inserting after subpart 1, the following new
subpart:
``Subpart 2--State Requirements for the Prevention and Treatment of
Concussions
``SEC. 9511. MINIMUM STATE REQUIREMENTS.
``(a) In General.--Beginning fiscal year 2015, as a condition of
receiving funds under this Act for a fiscal year, a State shall, not
later than July 1 of the preceding fiscal year, certify to the
Secretary in accordance with subsection (b) that the State has in
effect and is enforcing a law or regulation that, at a minimum,
establishes the following requirements:
``(1) Local educational agency concussion safety and
management plan.--Each local educational agency in the State
(including each charter school that is considered a local
educational agency under State law), in consultation with
members of the community in which the local educational agency
is located, shall develop and implement a standard plan for
concussion safety and management for public schools served by
the local educational agency that includes--
``(A) the education of students, parents, and
school personnel about concussions, including--
``(i) the training of school personnel on
evidence-based concussion safety and
management, including on prevention,
recognition, risk, academic consequences, and
response for both initial and any subsequent
concussions; and
``(ii) using, maintaining, and
disseminating to students and parents release
forms, treatment plans, observation,
monitoring, and reporting forms, recordkeeping
forms, and post-injury and prevention fact
sheets about concussions;
``(B) supports for each student recovering from a
concussion, including--
``(i) guiding the student in resuming
participation in school-sponsored athletic
activities and academic activities with the
help of a multidisciplinary concussion
management team, which shall include--
``(I) a health care professional,
the parents of such student, and other
relevant school personnel; and
``(II) an individual who is
assigned by the public school in which
the student is enrolled to oversee and
manage the recovery of the student;
``(ii) providing appropriate academic
accommodations aimed at progressively
reintroducing cognitive demands on such a
student; and
``(iii) if the student's symptoms of
concussion persist for a substantial period of
time--
``(I) evaluating the student in
accordance with section 614 of the
Individual with Disabilities Education
Act (20 U.S.C. 1414) to determine
whether the student is eligible for
services under part B of such Act (20
U.S.C. 1411 et seq.); or
``(II) evaluating whether the
student is eligible for services under
section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794); and
``(C) best practices designed to ensure, with
respect to concussions, the uniformity of safety
standards, treatment, and management, including--
``(i) disseminating information on
concussion safety and management to the public;
and
``(ii) applying best practice and uniform
standards for concussion safety and management
to all students enrolled in the public schools
served by the local educational agency.
``(2) Posting of information on concussions.--Each public
school in the State shall post on school grounds, in a manner
that is visible to students and school personnel, and make
publicly available on the school website, information on
concussions that--
``(A) is based on peer-reviewed scientific evidence
or consensus (such as information made available by the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention);
``(B) shall include--
``(i) the risks posed by sustaining a
concussion or multiple concussions;
``(ii) the actions a student should take in
response to sustaining a concussion, including
the notification of school personnel; and
``(iii) the signs and symptoms of a
concussion; and
``(C) may include--
``(i) the definition of a concussion under
section 9512(1);
``(ii) the means available to the student
to reduce the incidence or recurrence of a
concussion; and
``(iii) the effects of a concussion on
academic learning and performance.
``(3) Response to a concussion.--If any school personnel of
a public school in the State suspect that a student has
sustained a concussion during a school-sponsored athletic
activity or other school-sponsored activity--
``(A) the student shall be--
``(i) immediately removed from
participation in such activity; and
``(ii) prohibited from resuming
participation in school-sponsored athletic
activities--
``(I) on the day the student
sustained the concussion; and
``(II) until the day the student is
capable of resuming such participation,
according to the student's written
release, as described in paragraph (4);
``(B) the school personnel shall report to the
concussion management team--
``(i) that the student may have sustained a
concussion; and
``(ii) all available information with
respect to the student's injury; and
``(C) the concussion management team shall confirm
and report to the parents of the student--
``(i) the type of injury, and the date and
time of the injury, suffered by the student;
and
``(ii) any actions that have been taken to
treat the student.
``(4) Return to athletics.--If a student enrolled in a
public school in the State sustains a concussion, before the
student resumes participation in school-sponsored athletic
activities, the relevant school personnel shall receive a
written release from a health care professional, that--
``(A) may require the student to follow a plan
designed to aid the student in recovering and resuming
participation in such activities in a manner that--
``(i) is coordinated, as appropriate, with
periods of cognitive and physical rest while
symptoms of a concussion persist; and
``(ii) reintroduces cognitive and physical
demands on the student on a progressive basis
so long as such increases in exertion do not
cause the reemergence or worsening of symptoms
of a concussion; and
``(B) states that the student is capable of
resuming participation in such activities once the
student is asymptomatic.
``(5) Return to academics.--If a student enrolled in a
public school in the State has sustained a concussion, the
concussion management team (as described under paragraph
(1)(B)(i)) of the school shall consult with and make
recommendations to relevant school personnel and the student to
ensure that the student is receiving the appropriate academic
supports, including--
``(A) providing for periods of cognitive rest over
the course of the school day;
``(B) providing modified academic assignments;
``(C) allowing for gradual reintroduction to
cognitive demands; and
``(D) other appropriate academic accommodations or
adjustments.
``(b) Certification Requirement.--The certification required under
subsection (a) shall be in writing and include a description of the law
or regulation that meets the requirements of subsection (a).
``SEC. 9512. DEFINITIONS.
``In this subpart:
``(1) Concussion.--The term `concussion' means a type of
mild traumatic brain injury that--
``(A) is caused by a blow, jolt, or motion to the
head or body that causes the brain to move rapidly in
the skull;
``(B) disrupts normal brain functioning and alters
the physiological state of the individual, causing the
individual to experience--
``(i) any period of observed or self-
reported--
``(I) transient confusion,
disorientation, or altered
consciousness;
``(II) dysfunction of memory around
the time of injury; or
``(III) disruptions in gait or
balance; and
``(ii) symptoms that may include--
``(I) physical symptoms, such as
headache, fatigue, or dizziness;
``(II) cognitive symptoms, such as
memory disturbance or slowed thinking;
``(III) emotional symptoms, such as
irritability or sadness; or
``(IV) difficulty sleeping; and
``(C) occurs--
``(i) with or without the loss of
consciousness; and
``(ii) during participation--
``(I) in a school-sponsored
athletic activity; or
``(II) in any other activity
without regard to whether the activity
takes place on school property or
during the school day.
``(2) Health care professional.--The term `health care
professional' means a physician (including a medical doctor or
doctor of osteopathic medicine), nurse, athletic trainer,
physical therapist, neuropsychologist, or other qualified
individual--
``(A) who is registered, licensed, certified, or
otherwise statutorily recognized by the State to
provide medical treatment; and
``(B) whose scope of practice and experience
includes the diagnosis and management of traumatic
brain injury among a pediatric population.
``(3) Public school.--The term `public school' means a
public elementary school or public secondary school.
``(4) School personnel.--The term `school personnel' has
the meaning given such term in section 4151, except that such
term includes coaches and athletic trainers.
``(5) School-sponsored athletic activity.--The term
`school-sponsored athletic activity' means--
``(A) any physical education class or program of a
public school;
``(B) any athletic activity authorized by a public
school that takes place during the school day on the
school's property;
``(C) any activity of an extra-curricular sports
team, club, or league organized by a public school; and
``(D) any recess activity of a public school.''.
SEC. 3. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.
The table of contents in section 2 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 is amended--
(1) by striking the item relating to the heading of subpart
2 of part E of title IX and inserting the following new item:
``subpart 3--general provisions'';
and
(2) by inserting after the item relating to section 9506,
the following new items:
``subpart 2--state requirements for the prevention and treatment of
concussions
``Sec. 9511. Minimum State requirements.
``Sec. 9512. Definitions.''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
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