,,ii #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #aedf ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #be 7legislative day1 ,september #bd71 #bjac ,mr4 ,durbin introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to promote minimum ,state requirements for the prevention and treatment of concussions caused by participation in school sports1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,protecting ,student ,athletes from ,concussions ,act of #bjac4 #b4 ,minimum ,state requirements 7a7 ,minimum requirements ,each ,state that receives funds under the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fcja et seq47 and does not meet the requirements described in this section1 as of the date of enactment of this ,act1 shall1 not later than the last day of the fifth full fiscal year after the date of enactment of this ,act 7referred to in this ,act as the compliance deadline71 enact legislation or issue regulations establishing the following minimum requirements3 7#a7 ,local educational agency concussion safety and management plan ,each local educational agency in the ,state1 in consultation with members of the community in which such agency is located1 shall develop and implement a standard plan for concussion safety and management that-- 7,a7 educates students1 parents1 and school personnel about concussions1 through activities such as-- 7i7 training school personnel1 including coaches1 teachers1 athletic trainers1 related services personnel1 and school nurses1 on concussion safety and management1 including training on the prevention1 recognition1 and academic consequences of concussions and response to concussions2 and 7ii7 using1 maintaining1 and disseminating to students and parents-- 7,i7 release forms and other appropriate forms for reporting and recordkeeping2 7,,ii7 treatment plans2 and 7,,iii7 prevention and post-injury observation and monitoring fact sheets about concussion2 7,b7 encourages supports1 where feasible1 for a student recovering from a concussion 7regardless of whether or not the concussion occurred during school-sponsored activities1 during school hours1 on school property1 or during an athletic activity71 such as-- 7i7 guiding the student in resuming participation in athletic activity and academic activities with the help of a multi-disciplinary concussion management team1 which may include-- 7,i7 a health care professional1 the parents of such student1 a school nurse1 relevant related services personnel1 and other relevant school personnel2 and 7,,ii7 an individual who is assigned by a public school to oversee and manage the recovery of such student2 and 7ii7 providing appropriate academic accommodations aimed at progressively reintroducing cognitive demands on the student2 and 7,c7 encourages the use of best practices designed to ensure1 with respect to concussions1 the uniformity of safety standards1 treatment1 and management1 such as-- 7i7 disseminating information on concussion safety and management to the public2 and 7ii7 applying uniform best practice standards for concussion safety and management to all students enrolled in public schools4 7#b7 ,posting of information on concussions ,each public elementary school and each public secondary school shall post on school grounds1 in a manner that is visible to students and school personnel1 and make publicly available on the school website1 information on concussions that-- 7,a7 is based on peer-reviewed scientific evidence 7such as information made available by the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention72 7,b7 shall include information on-- 7i7 the risks posed by sustaining a concussion2 7ii7 the actions a student should take in response to sustaining a concussion1 including the notification of school personnel2 and 7iii7 the signs and symptoms of a concussion2 and 7,c7 may include information on-- 7i7 the definition of a concussion2 7ii7 the means available to the student to reduce the incidence or recurrence of a concussion2 and 7iii7 the effects of a concussion on academic learning and performance4 7#c7 ,response to concussion ,if an individual designated from among school personnel for purposes of this ,act suspects that a student has sustained a concussion 7regardless of whether or not the concussion occurred during school-sponsored activities1 during school hours1 on school property1 or during an athletic activity7-- 7,a7 the student shall be-- 7i7 immediately removed from participation in a school-sponsored athletic activity2 and 7ii7 prohibited from returning to participate in a school-sponsored athletic activity-- 7,i7 on the day such student is removed from such participation2 and 7,,ii7 until such student submits a written release from a health care professional stating that the student is capable of resuming participation in school-sponsored athletic activities2 and 7,b7 the designated individual shall report to the parent or guardian of such student-- 7i7 any information that the designated school employee is aware of regarding the date1 time1 and type of the injury suffered by such student 7regardless of where1 when1 or how a concussion may have occurred72 and 7ii7 any actions taken to treat such student4 7#d7 ,return to athletics ,if a student has sustained a concussion 7regardless of whether or not the concussion occurred during school-sponsored activities1 during school hours1 on school property1 or during an athletic activity71 before such student resumes participation in school-sponsored athletic activities1 the school shall receive a written release from a health care professional1 that-- 7,a7 states that the student is capable of resuming participation in such activities2 and 7,b7 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-- 7i7 is coordinated1 as appropriate1 with periods of cognitive and physical rest while symptoms of a concussion persist2 and 7ii7 reintroduces cognitive and physical demands on such student on a progressive basis only as such increases in exertion do not cause the reemergence or worsening of symptoms of a concussion4 7b7 ,noncompliance 7#a7 ,first year ,if a ,state described in subsection 7a7 fails to comply with subsection 7a7 by the compliance deadline1 the ,secretary of ,education shall reduce by #e percent the amount of funds the ,state receives under the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fcja et seq47 for the first fiscal year following the compliance deadline4 7#b7 ,succeeding years ,if the ,state fails to so comply by the last day of any fiscal year following the compliance deadline1 the ,secretary of ,education shall reduce by #aj percent the amount of funds the ,state receives under that ,act for the following fiscal year4 7#c7 ,notification of noncompliance ,prior to reducing any funds that a ,state receives under the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #fcja et seq47 in accordance with this subsection1 the ,secretary of ,education shall provide a written notification of the intended reduction of funds to the ,state and to the appropriate committees of ,congress4 #c4 ,rule of ,construction ,nothing in this ,act shall be construed to affect civil or criminal liability under ,federal or ,state law4 #d4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,concussion ,the term concussion means a type of mild traumatic brain injury that-- 7,a7 is caused by a blow1 jolt1 or motion to the head or body that causes the brain to move rapidly in the skull2 7,b7 disrupts normal brain functioning and alters the mental state of the individual1 causing the individual to experience-- 7i7 any period of observed or self-reported-- 7,i7 transient confusion1 disorientation1 or impaired consciousness2 7,,ii7 dysfunction of memory around the time of injury2 or 7,,iii7 loss of consciousness lasting less than #cj minutes2 or 7ii7 any #a of #d types of symptoms1 including-- 7,i7 physical symptoms1 such as headache1 fatigue1 or dizziness2 7,,ii7 cognitive symptoms1 such as memory disturbance or slowed thinking2 7,,iii7 emotional symptoms1 such as irritability or sadness2 or 7,,iv7 difficulty sleeping2 and 7,c7 can occur-- 7i7 with or without the loss of consciousness2 and 7ii7 during participation in any organized sport or recreational activity4 7#b7 ,health care professional ,the term health care professional-- 7,a7 means an individual who has been trained in diagnosis and management of traumatic brain injury in a pediatric population2 and 7,b7 includes a physician 7,m4,d4 or ,d4,o47 or certified athletic trainer who is registered1 licensed1 certified1 or otherwise statutorily recognized by the ,state to provide such diagnosis and management4 7#c7 ,local educational agency2 ,state ,the terms local educational agency and ,state have the meanings given such terms in section #iaja of the ,elementary and ,secondary ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ghja74 7#d7 ,related ,services ,personnel ,the term related services personnel means individuals who provide related services1 as defined under section #fjb of the ,individuals with ,disabilities ,education ,act 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #adja74 7#e7 ,school-sponsored athletic activity ,the term school-sponsored athletic activity means-- 7,a7 any physical education class or program of a school2 7,b7 any athletic activity authorized during the school day on school grounds that is not an instructional activity2 7,c7 any extracurricular sports team1 club1 or league organized by a school on or off school grounds2 and 7,d7 any recess activity4