AB 2007, as amended, McCarty. Youth athletics: youth sports organizations: concussions or other head injuries.
Existing law requires a school district, charter school, or private school, if it offers an athletic program, to immediately remove an athlete from an athletic activity for the remainder of the day if the athlete is suspected of sustaining a concussion or head injury, and prohibits the athlete from returning to the athletic activity until the athlete is evaluated by a licensed health care provider, trained in the management of concussions, and acting within the scope of his or her practice, and the athlete receives written clearance from the licensed health care provider to return to the athletic activity. Existing law also requires, on a yearly basis, a concussion and head injury information sheet to be signed and returned by the athlete and athlete’s parent or guardian before the athlete’s initiating practice or competition.
This bill would
apply these provisions to athletes participating in youth sports organizations, as defined tobegin delete include, but not necessarily limited to, a business or nonprofit entity or aend deletebegin insert include organizations, businesses, nonprofit entities, orend insert local governmentalbegin delete agency,end deletebegin insert agenciesend insert that sponsor or conduct amateurbegin delete athleticend deletebegin insert sportsend insert competitions,begin insert
training,end insert camps, orbegin delete clubs.end deletebegin insert clubs in which persons 17 years of age or younger participate in any of 2end insertbegin insert5 designated sports.end insert The bill would require youth sports organizations to notify the parents or guardians of athletes 17 years of age or younger who have been removed from athletic activities due to suspected concussions, as specified. The bill would require youth sports organizations tobegin delete giveend deletebegin insert offerend insert concussion and head injury education, orbegin insert
relatedend insert educational materials, or both, to each of their coaches and administrators on a yearly basis, as prescribed.begin delete Theend deletebegin insert The bill would require each of these coaches and administrators to successfully complete the concussion and head injury education offered under the bill at least once either online or in person.end insert
begin insert Theend insert bill would also requirebegin insert aend insert youth sportsbegin delete organizationsend deletebegin insert
organizationend insert to identify an individual within the organization who is responsible for ensuring compliance by the organization with the bill’s requirements for providing concussion and head injury education. The bill would additionally require the youth sports organization to identifybegin delete the details of theend deletebegin insert procedures to ensure compliance with the athlete removal provisions and theend insert return-to-play protocol, as specified.begin insert
The bill would specify that it applies to all persons participating in the activities of a youth sports organization, irrespective of their ages.end insert
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 124235)
2is added to Chapter 4 of Part 2 of Division 106 of the Health and
3Safety Code, to read:
4
(a) A youth sports organization that elects to offer an
8athletic program shall comply with all of the following:
9(1) An athlete who is suspected of sustaining a concussion or
10other head injury in an athletic activity shall be immediately
11removed from the athletic activity for the remainder of the day,
12and shall not be permitted to return tobegin delete theend deletebegin insert anyend insert athletic activity until
13he or she is evaluated by a licensed health care provider. The athlete
P3 1shall not be permitted to return tobegin delete theend delete
athletic activity until he or
2she receives written clearance to return tobegin delete theend delete athletic activity from
3a licensed health care provider. If the licensed health care provider
4determines that the athlete sustained a concussion or other head
5injury, the athlete shall also complete a graduated return-to-play
6protocol of no less than seven days in duration under the
7supervision of a licensed health care provider.
8(2) If an athlete who is 17 years of age or younger has been
9removed from athletic activity due to a suspected concussion, the
10youth sports organization shall notify a parent or guardian of that
11athlete of the time and date of the injury, the symptoms observed,
12and any treatment provided to that athlete for the injury.
13(3) On a yearly basis, the youth sports organization shall give
14
a concussion and head injury information sheet to each athlete.
15The information sheet shall be signed and returned by the athlete
16and, if the athlete is 17 years of age or younger, shall also be signed
17by the athlete’s parent or guardian, before the athlete initiates
18practice or competition.begin insert The information sheet may be sent and
19returned through an electronic medium including, but not
20necessarily limited to, fax or electronic mail.end insert
21(4) On a yearly basis, the youth sports organization shallbegin delete giveend delete
22begin insert offerend insert concussion and head injury education, orbegin insert
relatedend insert educational
23materials, or both, to each coach and administrator of the youth
24sports organization.begin insert
Each coach and administrator shall be
25required to successfully complete the concussion and head injury
26education offered pursuant to this paragraph at least once, either
27online or in person, before supervising an athlete in an activity of
28the youth sports organization.end insert
29(5) The youth sports organization shall identify both of the
30following:
31(A) An individual within the organization who is responsible
32for ensuring compliance by the organization with the requirements
33for providing concussion and head injury education contained in
34paragraph (4).
35(B) begin deleteDetails of end deletebegin insertProcedures
to ensure compliance with the athlete
36removal provisions and end insertthe return-to-play protocol required
37pursuant to paragraph (1).
38(b) As used in thisbegin delete section,end deletebegin insert article, all ofend insert the followingbegin delete terms begin insert shall apply:end insert
39have the following meanings:end delete
P4 1(1) “Concussion and head injury education and educational
2materials” and a “concussion and head injury information sheet”
3shall, at a minimum, include information relating to all of the
4following:
5(A) Head injuries and their potential consequences.
6(B) The signs and symptoms of a concussion.
7(C) Best practices for removal of an athlete from an athletic
8activity after a suspected concussion.
9(D) Steps for returning an athlete to school and athletic activity
10after a concussion or head injury.
11(2) “Licensed health care provider” means a licensed health
12care provider who is trained in the evaluation and management of
13concussions and is acting within the scope of his or her practice.
14(3) “Youth sports organization” means an
organization,begin delete which begin insert business, nonprofit entity, orend insert a local
15may include, but is not necessarily limited to, a business or
16nonprofit entity orend delete
17governmentalbegin delete agency,end deletebegin insert agencyend insert that sponsors or conducts amateur
18begin delete athletic competitions,end deletebegin insert sports competitions, training,end insert camps, or
19clubs in which persons 17 years of age or youngerbegin delete participate.end delete
20
begin insert
participate in any of the following sports:end insert
21
(A) Baseball.
22
(B) Basketball.
23
(C) Bicycle motocross (BMX).
24
(D) Boxing.
25
(E) Competitive cheerleading.
26
(F) Contact martial arts.
27
(G) Diving.
28
(H) Equestrian activities.
29
(I) Field hockey.
30
(J) Football.
31
(K) Gymnastics.
32
(L) Ice hockey.
33
(M) Lacrosse.
34
(N) Parkour.
35
(O) Rodeo.
36
(P) Roller derby.
37
(Q) Rugby.
38
(R) Skateboarding.
39
(S) Skiing.
40
(T) Soccer.
P5 1
(U) Softball.
2
(V) Surfing.
3
(W) Volleyball.
4
(X) Water polo.
5
(Y) Wrestling.
6(c) This section shallbegin insert apply to all persons participating in the
7activities of a youth sports organization, irrespective of their ages.
8This section shallend insert not be construed to prohibit a youth sports
9organization, or any other appropriate entity, from adopting and
10
enforcing rules intended to provide a higher standard of safety for
11athletes than the standard established under this section.
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