MINUTES OF THE

NATIONAL COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

COMMITTEE ON COMPETITIVE SAFEGUARDS AND MEDICAL ASPECTS OF SPORTS

NCAA December 14-16, 2002

Indianapolis, Indiana

Participants:

Amy Barr, Eastern Illinois University

Lauren Costello, Princeton University

Pam Gill-Fisher, University of California, Davis

Letha Y. Griffin, Georgia State University

Donald Kaverman, Southeast Missouri State University

Michael Krauss, Purdue University

Arnold Mazur, Boston College

Robin Meiggs, Humboldt State University

Melinda L. Millard-Stafford, Georgia Institute of Technology

Matt Mitten, Marquette University, chair

Erika Proko, Washington & Lee University

Rochel Rittgers, Augustana College (Illinois)

Darryl D. Rogers, Southern Connecticut State University

Brian J. Sharkey, University of Montana

Nicolette Sinclair, University of South Carolina, Spartanburg

Jerry Weber, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Connee Zotos, Drew University

Randall W. Dick, NCAA

Andrayana Getchell, NCAA

Mary E. Wilfert, NCAA

Jerry L. Diehl, The National Federation of State High School Associations, was not able to attend the meeting.

Margot Putukian, Pennsylvania State University; Frank Uryasz, The National Center for Drug Free Sport; Elsa Cole, NCAA; Damani Leech, NCAA; and Dave Schnase, NCAA, were in attendance for portions of the meeting.

Bryan Smith, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, was in attendance for portions of the meeting via conference call.

[NOTE: These minutes contain only actions taken (formal votes or stated “sense of the meeting”) in accordance with NCAA policy regarding minutes of all Association entities. While certain items on the committee’s agenda were acted on at various times throughout the meeting, all final actions within a given topic are combined in these minutes for convenience of reference.]

Saturday, December 14

The meeting was called to order at 5 p.m. by the chair, Mr. Mitten. All members were present as noted above.

1. Opening Remarks. Matt Mitten welcomed new members Mr. Kaverman, Dr. Krauss, Ms. Meiggs, Ms. Proko, Dr. Putukian and Ms. Sinclair to the committee.

2. Previous Minutes.

It was VOTED

“That the minutes of the June 21-23, 2002, committee meeting be approved as distributed.”

3. Mission Statement and Strategic Plan. The committee deferred review of the strategic plan until the summer meeting.

4. NCAA Governance Actions and Issues. The committee reviewed relevant actions from the NCAA Executive Committee, the NCAA Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet and the NCAA Divisions II and III Management Councils, and took the following actions:

a. Division I.

The committee reviewed the Division I Football Out-of-Season Conditioning Model and determined it met the acclimatization, medical resources and recovery health and safety criteria established by the committee, with the following wording modifications:

(1) That the model be modified to specify that student-athletes shall not engage in more than three hours of on-field practice activities and no other physical activities, except weightlifting, on days when there is a single session. The single acclimatization and preseason practice days are designed to allow recovery for subsequent practices. Other physical activity during these times conflicts with the health and safety intent of these sessions. Weightlifting, if necessary, should be conducted with the same recovery principle in mind.

(2) That the model be modified to specify that prior to participation in any preseason practice activities, all recruits and student-athletes (with the exception of those individuals who previously have received a medical exam) shall be required to undergo a medical examination or evaluation administered by a physician. Returning student-athletes often do not undergo a complete annual physical examination but are evaluated for an updated medical history. This wording modification allows the medical professional at each institution to choose the appropriate assessment for each student-athlete.

(3) The committee also noted the need to identify a representative to the Football Issues Committee to serve starting September 2003, as Dr. Smith's service as consultant ends at that time.

b. Division II.

(1) The committee reviewed the Division II Football Preseason Practice Model and determined that, with wording modifications consistent with those noted above in the Division I model, the model meets the acclimatization, medical resources and recovery health and safety criteria established by the committee.

(2) Responding to the request of the Division II Presidents Council and Division II Management Council, the committee developed the following wording regarding sports medicine staff authority for consideration in the Division II Football Preseason Practice Model (2003 NCAA Convention Proposal No. 29): “Preseason practice activities should receive the same institutional health and safety oversight as regular and postseason activities, consistent with the NCAA health and safety principle of student-athlete welfare and the NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook guideline regarding emergency care and coverage. In this regard a member of the institution’s sports medicine staff has the unchallengeable authority to cancel or modify the workout for health and safety reasons.”

The wording modification addresses comments from he Division II Presidents Council and Division II Management Council that this statement reflect institutional responsibility consistent with medical coverage of other sports and activities. However, it is was noted that the 2001-02 NCAA Injury Surveillance System data showed that NCAA football student-athletes have a significantly higher risk of heat illness than student-athletes in other monitored fall sports.

c. Division III.

The committee recommended that Division III develop a football preseason practice model that incorporates the general acclimatization, medical resource and recovery criteria contained in the Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports July 2002 Management Council report and is consistent with the health and safety aspects of the proposed Divisions I and II football preseason practice models. The committee believes that football preseason practice principles such as acclimatization, medical resources and recovery should be applied consistently across all divisions. The specific physiology and safety components noted in the Divisions I and II models are not division-dependent.

d. Executive Committee. The Risk Management and Insurance Task Force requested comment from the committee on the task force report. The committee supported in concept the task force's efforts to expand medical care for student-athletes. The committee has identified in Guideline 1a of the NCAA Sports Medicine Handbook that "each student-athlete should be covered by individual, parental or institutional medical insurance to defray the costs of significant injury or illness" (revised August 2000). During its June 2001 meeting, the committee voted to support the deregulation of Bylaw 16.4, and to include language that reads, "It is permissible for an institution to provide medical and dental expenses that the institution at its discretion determines to be incidental to an enrolled student-athlete’s participation in intercollegiate athletics including but not limited to, the following…” and identified insurance, counseling expenses, disability expenses, corrective eyewear and dental care.

5. NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) Report. The committee SAAC representatives, Ms. Barr, Ms. Proko and Ms. Sinclair, updated the committee on issues under consideration by their respective divisional SAAC. Division I SAAC is addressing insurance coverage concerns and advocating for more universal coverage of student-athletes. Division II has been addressing van safety issues and advocating legislation for a vote on the convention floor. Division III has been addressing playing and practice seasons and Native American Mascots issues.

6. Budget Issues. The committee supported adding a specific budget line on the Championship Proposed Budget and Financial Report to include the cost of medical care and coverage. The cost to provide medical care and coverage during a championship is a real cost that must be reflected in these bids. Due to new requirements in athletic-training curriculum programs, many programs no longer supplement their athletics medical care and coverage with athletic training students. The need to supplement staff to support a championship event is likely, especially when coverage is needed for the host school's athletic teams that are practicing simultaneously with the NCAA championship. The committee recommended including a specific line on this form that identifies medical expenses.

[Note: The meeting recessed at 8 p.m.]

Sunday, December 15

The meeting was called to order at 8 a.m. All members were present as noted above.

7. Outreach. The committee reviewed outreach opportunities with various sports medicine, college health and health education organizations and received reports from members and staff working with these groups. The committee identified the following areas for further review and comment:

a. The National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) is coordinating an inter-association task force to establish a consensus statement on exertional heat illness. The NCAA has been requested to provide relevant Association information on this topic and to consider an endorsement of the final document. The committee identified appropriate materials and recommended that staff forward these materials to the NATA. The committee noted that it could not provide endorsement or comment on the document until a final draft could be reviewed.

b. The American College Health Association (ACHA) provides student health data, including information on alcohol and other drug use through continuing reports provided by the National College Health Assessment. Ms. Wilfert will identify data sources to the committee for comparisons with NCAA drug use data.

c. The Joint Commission on Sports Medicine and Science requested updated contact information for CSMAS representation. Ms. Rittgers agreed to be listed as committee contact and will represent the committee at the upcoming meeting. Dr. Millard-Stafford is the alternate.

d. The committee agreed to establish informal liaisons with both the National Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association and the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association. The committee identified written communication, rather than in-person attendance at meetings, as the means in which this will be accomplished.

[Note: The meeting recessed at 9:30 a.m. and resumed at 4:30 p.m.]

8. Legislation. The committee deferred discussion on sports safety rules to the June 2003 committee meeting.

9. Fan Violence and Crowd Control. The committee approved the submission of a statement to request actions be initiated through the NCAA national office to reduce negative behavior associated with intercollegiate contests. The statement is as follows:

The Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS) has noted with growing concern the escalating level of violence and property damage by fans and others that is occurring within sports venues and the surrounding communities in conjunction with collegiate competitions, especially those that arouse strong feelings on campus and in the adjacent communities. The CSMAS requests that NCAA leadership focus constructive energies in identifying appropriate ways the NCAA can act, on its own behalf and in collaboration with other concerned collegiate organizations, toward reducing negative behaviors associated with intercollegiate athletics.

10. Legal Issues.

a. The committee identified the necessity to provide a written waiver to accommodate transmission of injury surveillance data, per the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulations. The committee reviewed and approved a draft of a HIPAA waiver document to be sent with the student-athlete statement. The question about whether a HIPAA waiver is necessary for the drug-testing program was answered subsequent to the meeting, with the NCAA general counsel’s office advising it was unnecessary.

b. The committee reviewed NCAA antitrust information.

[Note: The meeting recessed at 5:30 p.m.]

Monday, December 16

The meeting was called to order at 8 a.m. All members were present as noted above.

11. Committee Staffing Needs. The committee recommended an extension for the committee chair and the Drug-Education and Drug-Testing Subcommittee chair, as these members are in their fourth year, in order to avoid premature turnover in those positions.

The committee also noted with regret that Ms. Gill-Fisher will be leaving the committee after this meeting, as her institution is reclassifying from Division II to Division I and she can no longer serve as the Division II Management Council Representative to the CSMAS.

12. Education Issues.

a. The committee reviewed the following potential articles and contributors for the spring Health and Safety Newsletter (March 15 deadline):

(1) Official’s role in injury prevention – Ms. Barr, Ms. Proko and Ms. Zotos.