Workers' Compensation: NFL

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Monday, August 18, 2014

State Sen. Leland Yee allegedly solicited bribes for NFL Workers’ Compensation Law

The NFL controversy involving workers' compensation claims continues to heat up. Today's post by Brett Gowen of the California Bar is shared from fbgslaw.com

Brett Gowen

As part of the ongoing saga of State Senator Leland Yee, a new charge for racketeering was given by a federal grand jury. As part of the indictment, Sen. Yee allegedly solicited $60,000 for Yee’s vote and another senator’s vote on a bill dealing with limiting workers’ compensation benefits for NFL players. According to the indictment, Sen. Yee believed the money would be paid by a NFL team owner according to an LA Times article.

Attorney, Melissa Brown at Fraulob Brown Gowen & Snapp, has a connection to the NFL and their treatment of injured players. Ms. Brown was retained as an expert witness for the NFL Players’ Association at an arbitration hearing involving a workers’ compensation law dispute with NFL owners. The arbitration, and the flurry of lawsuits involving NFL injuries, is part of the growing recognition of the impact the game has on the long-term health of the players.

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Trickle Down Consequences of Professional Athletic Head Injuries

The new NFL logo went into use at the 2008 draft. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The consequences of denying workers' compensation benefits to professional athletes is having a profound effect on high school and community sporting programs. When a system that is supposed to provide medical benefits and disability payments in a summary fashion turns it's back on professional players, the issue of safety becomes even more important to those who re considering entering the economic lottery of sports for success.

"The sport of football is changing. Revelations about widespread brain injuries have ushered in new rules and a lawsuit against the NFL. But what about the millions of kids who play football in elementary, middle and high school? We asked our network of Student Reporting Labs around the country to investigate the impact of new awareness of concussions on youth football programs in their communities."

Click here to see/hear/read the continuing report from the PBS NewsHour "Tough Calls"

Friday, January 31, 2014

Football: The Business of Uncompensated Injuries

It is hard to image that any other Industry that denies its employees workers’s compensation benefits for known work-connected injuries would be bragging about a mere 13% reduction in head injuries. That is what the NFL is doing this week in advance of it’s annual mayhem ritual called the Super Bowl.

Sports entertainment is just big business. A major distraction to the routine of boring and tedious daily activities the NFL has found an addictive niche market, feed by high TV rating (ESPN) and fueled by gambling. A common denominator of public distraction.

The pawns in the system are those young “student-athletes” who take a risk as unpaid talent to carry on the dream for riches and fame as cheap (free) talent for the cause of school spirit and the hope of landing an NFL contract. The tragic risks exist even at that level of are more than obvious as I saw a Rutgers player crack his neck on the MetLife Stadium field in the Rutgers v Army game a couple of years ago.

Todays post is shared from the nytime.com/.

As the professional sports conglomerates spread their political influence from state house to state house demolishing the basic tenants of workers’ compensation.They continue their effort to bar injured players from seeking basic workers’ compensation benefits for known occupational risks,.They are now bragging about a mere 13% reduction. What about the other 87%? The injured players they can go uncompensated?

The...

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Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Concern Raised Over Opt-Out Terms of NFL Concussion Settlement

Today's post was shared by WSJ Law Blog and comes from blogs.wsj.com

When a federal judge refused to sign off on the NFL’s $764 million concussion settlement with retired players earlier this month, both the league and lead plaintiffs’ lawyers portrayed the development as a mere procedural hiccup.

The deal may appear to be within inches from the goal line, but the family of the late NFL star Junior Seau is putting up resistance, emerging as one of the most vocal critics of the proposed settlement.

An attorney for the Seau family filed a memo on Jan. 24 objecting to the tentative terms. The family may not be alone as lawyers representing dozens of former NFL players pore over the fine print of the 85-page proposed deal.

U.S. District Judge Anita Brody held off on giving her preliminary approval of the deal because she was concerned that the $764 million might not be enough to cover all potential recipients. She instructed both sides to supply the court with more information on how they arrived at their numbers.

The lawsuit by the Seau family, who are potential class members, stands apart from the bulk of claims, most of which do not involve the death of a player. But some of the family’s objections raise broader concerns that could resonate with other plaintiffs, according to Steve Strauss, the attorney representing Mr. Seau’s children.

Speaking to Law Blog, Mr. Strauss said he was especially concerned by the opt-out terms in the deal.

Plaintiffs who do not want to bind themselves to the settlement would have...

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Friday, January 17, 2014

Judge Refuses to Sign Off on NFL Settlement

Workers' compensation has been a successful vehicle to shield employers from liability. Perhaps the the NFL should have considered when the legislated some professional athletes out of compensation court. Today's post was shared by WSJ Law Blog and comes from blogs.wsj.com

A federal judge on Tuesday refused to sign off on the NFL’s $760 million concussion settlement with retired players because of concerns that the pot of money might be too small to adequately compensate everyone owed money.
The ruling puts on hold what had been a major victory for the league on a controversial issue that had long haunted the sport. The deal reached last summer after months of negotiations required the NFL to pay $760 million — mostly in the form of medical benefits and injury compensation — to thousands of former players and their families.
A former federal judge acting as a court-appointed mediator endorsed the proposed settlement in court papers this month, calling it “fair and reasonable.”
U.S. District Judge Anita B. Brody of Pennsylvania, though, wasn’t convinced, denying her preliminary approval.
“I am primarily concerned that not all Retired NFL Football Players who ultimately receive a Qualifying Diagnosis or their related claimants will be paid,” Judge Brody wrote in her order. “Even if only 10 percent of Retired NFL Football Players eventually receive a Qualifying diagnosis, it is difficult to see how the Monetary Award Fund would have the funds available over its lifespan to pay all claimants at these significant award levels.”
Judge Brody said economists who conducted an analysis on behalf of the retired players believed that the sum was enough. That report, though, wasn’t submitted in...

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Tuesday, January 7, 2014

NFL concussion payout formula would provide up to $5 million per retired player

Today's post is shared from nola.com

Lawyers representing former NFL players in the proposed $765 million settlement of thousands of concussion-related claims detailed Monday how the money would be divided.

The awards could reach $5 million for athletes with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease; $4 million for a death involving brain trauma; and $3 million for dementia cases.
Under the payout formula, those maximum awards would go to players under 45, who would likely need more lifetime care. For a man in his early 60s, the awards top out at $3 million for ALS and $950,000 for Alzheimer's disease. An 80-year-old with early dementia would get $25,000.
Individual awards would also reflect how long the player spent in the NFL, unrelated medical issues and other factors. For instance, the award could be reduced significantly if someone had injuries from an unrelated stroke or car accident. Men without any neurological problems would get baseline testing, and could seek compensation if test reveal any problems.
"This is an extraordinary settlement for retired NFL players and their families -- from those who suffer with severe neurocognitive illnesses today, to those who are currently healthy but fear they may develop symptoms decades into the future," lead players' lawyers...

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Friday, November 8, 2013

State panel rejected injury claim by NFL's Dorsett

Today's post was shared from the latimes.org.

A brain-injury claim by former National Football League player Tony Dorsett was thrown out by a California workers' compensation panel just months before he was diagnosed with early signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a debilitating condition linked to repeated blows to the head.

The 59-year-old Hall of Fame running back's claim was dismissed in May when a workers' compensation judge ruled that because Dorsett had agreed to an $85,000 settlement for injuries to "multiple orthopaedic body parts" in 1991, he could not file another claim for any subsequent injury, state records show.
On Wednesday it was revealed that researchers at UCLA had found that Dorsett and two other former NFL players showed signs of CTE. The degenerative disease has been found in the autopsied brains of dozens of former NFL players, among them Junior Seau and Dave Duerson. But only recently have diagnoses in living subjects been possible.
Dorsett appealed that workers' compensation decision, but it was upheld in August. A three-judge panel found that language in the 1991 settlement released the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos from all future claims involving virtually any body part, including the head.
Mel Owens, Dorsett's attorney, said Thursday that he was not available to discuss the case, which claimed cumulative head injuries but did not specify CTE. Owens had 45 days to appeal the decision to the California Court of Appeal, but court records indicate no such action has been...

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Friday, October 18, 2013

NFL Fans Weigh Impact Of Players' Head Injuries

Ed Zurga/AP

Fans cheer wildly with a Kansas City Chiefs player at an NFL game against the Oakland Raiders. For many fans, the risky side of football doesn't quell their love of the sport.

The NFL season is in high gear — a fact that pleases the roughly 64 percent of Americans who watch football. The season rolls on despite the now constant news about concussions in the sport.
The recent TV documentary League of Denial and the book by the same name claim that for years the NFL had denied and covered up evidence linking football and brain damage. Is the concussion conversation challenging this country's deep love for the game?
Apparently, not very much. Open a magazine, turn on a TV, and the new NFL ad campaign asks, "Why do you love football?"
"It doesn't matter if you're a coach or parent, player or fan. If you love football, now's your chance to tell your story. Go to togetherwemakefootball.com. If you're story's chosen, you could end up at the Super Bowl, just like I did," a boy says in one ad.
Whether intended or not, the ads have also helped blunt severe criticism facing the NFL in recent years. There was the massive concussion lawsuit pitting thousands of former players against the NFL — the league's potential liability was enormous. And League of Denial was poised to hit TV screens and bookstores, exposing more darkness.
But a week before the season started, the NFL settled the suit. And by the time League of Denial aired last week on PBS, many more football...

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Monday, October 14, 2013

What we know about football and repetitive brain trauma

Today's post was shared by Mother Jones and comes from www.motherjones.com

Brain tissue images, with tau protein in brown. The brain on the left is from a normal subject, the brain in the middle is from a former football player, and the brain on the right is from a former boxer.Courtesy of the Boston University Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy.
League of Denial, a PBS Frontline documentary about the NFL's response (or lack thereof) to concussions and long-term brain injuries among its players, airs tonight. The investigation attempts to hash out what the league really knew about player safety while it downplayed the ill effects the sport has on its athletes. But what exactly are those effects, and what about them made thousands of former players sue the NFL over their injuries?
While the symptoms of a concussion—dizziness, vomiting, memory loss—can be felt immediately, the long-term impacts of repeated brain trauma have been harder to study. Research points to chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, as one of the major outcomes. CTE is caused by a buildup of tau, a protein that strangles brain cells and degenerates brain tissue, which is caused by repetitive brain trauma like the hits football players endure. This leads to depression, increased aggression, lack of impulse control, and eventually dementia, which may not manifest until years or even decades after the brain injuries took place. While CTE can only be definitively identified after a patient dies, a pilot study at the University of...

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

California limits workers' comp sports injury claims

Today's post shared from The LA Times.

After more than a year of intense lobbying by professional sports leagues, California has slammed the door on most athletes looking to file injury claims in the state, including those with serious brain injuries.

Gov. Jerry Brown on Tuesday signed legislation that significantly limits workers' compensation claims by pro players. It's a significant victory for the National Football League, which has been trying to reduce its financial exposure to concussions and other brain injuries that former players allege are the result of repeated blows to the head.
In August, the league agreed to a $765-million settlement with more than 4,500 former players. They had sued the NFL in federal court over the lasting effects of concussions, which have been linked to dementia and other debilitating illnesses. That landmark deal was viewed as a bargain for the league, considering the gravity of the injuries and the bad publicity the lawsuit generated for the sport.
The NFL's legislative win in Sacramento could be far more valuable over the long term. It allows the league to sidestep exposure to thousands of serious head and brain trauma claims by out-of-state players who are no longer eligible to file in California.
The bill, signed without comment by the governor, was the subject of nearly 18 months of lobbying by the NFL, Major League Baseball and other major sports leagues and workers' compensation insurers. It ultimately found the backing of nearly every member of the Legislature;...

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Tuesday, October 8, 2013

When It Comes To Brain Injury, Authors Say NFL Is In A 'League Of Denial'

Today's post was shared by The Health Care Blog and comes from www.npr.org

The casket bearing the body of former Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster is surrounded by flowers, after funeral services in Pittsburgh in September 2002. Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru, authors of League of Denial, point to Webster's autopsy as one of the most significant moments in the history of sports.

When the Pittsburgh Steelers won four Super Bowls in the 1970s, you could argue that no one played a bigger role than Mike Webster. Webster was the Steelers' center, snapping the ball to the quarterback, then waging war in the trenches, slamming his body and helmet into defensive players to halt their rush.

He was a local hero, which is why the city was stunned when his life fell apart. He lost all his money, and his marriage, and ended up spending nights in the bus terminal in Pittsburgh. Webster died of a heart attack, and on Sept. 28, 2002, came the autopsy.

"His body ends up in the Allegheny County coroner's office," ESPN investigative reporter Mark Fainaru-Wada tells NPR's David Greene. "And there's a young junior pathologist there named Bennet Omalu. He makes this decision sort of on the spur of the moment to study Mike Webster's brain."

Fainaru-Wada and his brother, Steve Fainaru, have written a new book called League of Denial, which was also turned into a Frontline documentary on PBS. They take an exhaustive look at how the NFL has dealt with allegations that playing football can lead to brain damage. They interviewed...

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Friday, October 4, 2013

Book: NFL denied concussion link to football

Today's post was shared by FairWarning and comes from espn.go.com

Book: NFL Denied Concussion Link
The National Football League conducted a two-decade campaign to deny a growing body of scientific research that showed a link between playing football and brain damage, according to a new book co-authored by a pair of ESPN investigative reporters.
The book, "League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions and the Battle for Truth," reports that the NFL used its power and resources to discredit independent scientists and their work; that the league cited research data that minimized the dangers of concussions while emphasizing the league's own flawed research; and that league executives employed an aggressive public relations strategy designed to keep the public unaware of what league executives really knew about the effects of playing the game. ESPN The Magazine and Sports Illustrated published book excerpts on Wednesday morning.
The NFL's whitewash of the debilitating neurological effects of playing football suffered by players began under former commissioner Paul Tagliabue, who left office in 2006, but continued under his successor, current commissioner Roger Goodell, according to the book written by ESPN investigative reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Steve Fainaru.
The book, which will be released Tuesday by Crown Archetype, compares the NFL's two decades of actions on health and safety to that of Big Tobacco -- the group of cigarette-making corporations whose executives for years covered up the fact their products contained dangerous, addictive,...

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Friday, September 27, 2013

Some players may be out of NFL deal

Today's post was shared by CAAA and comes from espn.go.com

NFL Concussion Settlement Details
New details from the NFL's $765 million proposed concussion settlement reveal that the first players diagnosed with football-related brain damage would be shut out of the deal. And with the number of confirmed brain damage cases growing, some players and attorneys told "Outside the Lines" they fear there isn't enough money to cover all eligible players diagnosed with such injuries.

Former players report widespread confusion over who will qualify for compensation and how the money will be distributed. Details described to "Outside the Lines" by sources familiar with the settlement -- along with new statistics on the incidence of football-related brain damage -- underscore the concerns voiced by some players and lawyers:

• The proposed settlement disqualifies most players who died before 2006, even if they were diagnosed with football-related brain damage. That would shut out the relatives of players like Hall of Fame Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster, who died in 2002 and was later diagnosed with the first case of football-related brain damage. Webster's protracted battle with the NFL raised public awareness and helped ignite the NFL's concussion crisis.

A source familiar with the negotiations said the NFL sought to include only death claims that fell within the statute of limitations -- two years in most states. That would have cut out many players who died before 2009 and 2010. As part of the negotiations, representatives of the...

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Sunday, September 8, 2013

California bill limiting workers' comp claims by athletes advances

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from www.latimes.com

An effort by the National Football League and owners of other professional sports teams to limit workers' compensation claims by out-of-state athletes is close to final passage in the California Legislature.

The measure cleared the state Senate on Friday on a 34-2 vote. In May, it passed the Assembly on a 61-4 tally.

The proposal is expected to win final passage next week in the Assembly and to be on the governor's desk shortly after the scheduled Sept. 13 legislative recess.

Because of its liberally interpreted workplace injury laws, California has become the de facto forum of last resort for so-called cumulative trauma claims, including head injuries, by retired players. Many of them may have participated in just a handful of games in California over the course of their careers.

The crackdown on athletes' workers' compensation claims has been the focus of a major lobbying campaign by the NFL and other pro-sports leagues. Former athletes have filed more than 4,400 claims involving head and brain injuries since 2006.

Such claims represent an estimated potential $1-billion liability for the NFL alone.

The bill, AB 1309 by Assemblyman Henry T. Perea (D-Fresno), does not affect players who spent their careers with California-based football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer teams.

However, it bans claims from athletes who played for California teams for less than two seasons, and those who played for California teams at least two seasons but spent seven...

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The uneven playing field of workers' compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Brain injuries a big problem for NFL in California (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Workers compensation hike on California employers proposed (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
OK's True Cost Control Feature (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Move Over: Obesity as a medical condition is coming to workers' compensation (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)
Cost Shifting vs. Cost Fixing (workers-compensation.blogspot.com)

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Friday, September 6, 2013

NFL moving closer to using helmet sensors

Today's post was shared by WCBlog and comes from profootballtalk.nbcsports.com

With the NFL’s concussion liability regarding retired players on the way to being extinguished via settlement, the league can now focus on taking additional steps to limit liability to its current and future players.

After months of delay, the NFL could soon be putting sensors in helmets.

“Our goal is that by midseason we will have some teams geared up,” Kevin Guskiewicz, a University of North Carolina researcher and a member of the NFL’s Head, Neck and Spine Committee, said at a Wednesday event in Baltimore, via USA Today. “We’re getting close, and I think that we have some teams identified.”

The NFL previously had been chasing its tail regarding helmet sensors, with the league referring questions from ESPN regarding the league’s failure to use helmet sensors to Guskiewicz, who was publicly advocating the use of helmet sensors.

Guskiewicz spoke openly in June 2012 about giving up on the effort to use sensors if the sensors weren’t used within the coming year. At that same time, former Steelers receiver and current NBC analyst Hines Ward expressed concern about the approach.

“You’re gonna open up a while Pandora’s Box with it,” Ward told ESPN. “For a doctor to read a computer and tell me how hard I’ve been hit and to pull me out of a game, that won’t sit well with a lot of players.”

It won’t, because many players want to try to persuade...

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Friday, May 3, 2013

Workers' Compensation Has Become A Territorial Fight

As the nation's economy continues to struggle for upward movement, workers' compensation has become a political battlefield. Professional athletes have become a target as states attempt to pass legislation to restrict claims from visiting athletes.

"Controversial legislation that would restrict most professional athletes from out-of-state

teams from filing claims in California workers' compensation courts won overwhelming approval Thursday in the state Assembly.

Despite aggressive lobbying by professional football players and other athletes, the bill, AB 1309, passed 61 to 4. The measure now goes to the state Senate.

"Our workers' compensation system has been increasingly exploited by out-of-state professional players at the expense of California teams and all California businesses," said the bill's author, Assemblyman Henry T. Perea (D-Fresno). "The flood of claims are raising insurance costs for all employers."

See the complete article: Assembly OKs workers' comp bill to ban out-of-state athletes

Read more about "athletes" and workers' compensation

Copyright

Monday, August 18, 2014

State Sen. Leland Yee allegedly solicited bribes for NFL Workers’ Compensation Law

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Trickle Down Consequences of Professional Athletic Head Injuries

Friday, January 31, 2014

Football: The Business of Uncompensated Injuries

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Concern Raised Over Opt-Out Terms of NFL Concussion Settlement

Friday, January 17, 2014

Judge Refuses to Sign Off on NFL Settlement

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

NFL concussion payout formula would provide up to $5 million per retired player

Friday, November 8, 2013

State panel rejected injury claim by NFL's Dorsett

Friday, October 18, 2013

NFL Fans Weigh Impact Of Players' Head Injuries

Monday, October 14, 2013

What we know about football and repetitive brain trauma

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

California limits workers' comp sports injury claims

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

When It Comes To Brain Injury, Authors Say NFL Is In A 'League Of Denial'

Friday, October 4, 2013

Book: NFL denied concussion link to football

Friday, September 27, 2013

Some players may be out of NFL deal

Sunday, September 8, 2013

California bill limiting workers' comp claims by athletes advances

Friday, September 6, 2013

NFL moving closer to using helmet sensors

Friday, May 3, 2013

Workers' Compensation Has Become A Territorial Fight

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