NCAA Settles Concussion Lawsuit

The NCAA has reached a preliminary agreement in a class-action lawsuit over student-athlete head injuries. Under the settlement, the NCAA will create a $70 million medical monitoring fund, which is similar to what’s been proposed by the NFL and NFL Players Association. The agreement will also force NCAA schools to overhaul policies across all sports. Added policy stipulations include ensuring that medical personnel be present at all contact sports and students be barred from returning to games or practice on the day they sustain concussions. Steve Berman, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said, “Anything we can do to enhance concussion management is a very important day for student-athletes.” According to NCAA documents, 30,000 concussions occurred during college sports from 2004 to 2009.