Georgia adopts new concussion policies for young athletes

Georgia now has new standards for young athletes who have suffered concussions.

Gov. Nathan Deal on Tuesday signed House Bill 284, which creates new protocols for informing parents about the dangers of concussions and for identifying and treating players with head injuries.

It requires any student in a public or private k-12 school who shows signs of a concussion to be removed from practice and games and would not be able to return until a doctor says it is safe. Public sports leagues are also required to provide concussion forms to parents and guardians and encouraged to apply the policies to their programs.

The legislation was pushed by the NFL and the Atlanta Falcons, and team president Rich McKay was on hand to witness the bill signing. Some 43 states have youth concussion laws and several others are considering pending legislation.

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