Required concussion testing sparks concern for some parents

If you have a student athlete returning to the practice field next month, chances are he or she will need to hit the computer lab first. Many school districts in Oregon and Washington are requiring kids to take a neurological test before they play, and it’s required whether their parents approve or not.

In some cases if the students don’t take the test they can’t play. It's a debate that pits parents' rights against schools' liability.

Max's law is now on the books in Oregon. The law is named after Max Conradt, a Waldport High School quarterback who suffered a concussion in a game but continued to play. Today, Max lives in an assisted living facility for adults with life-altering brain injuries.

The law spells out rules for return to play. But to help team trainers make the call, some districts are turning to a company called Impact Testing.

At least one parent, however, is concerned about his daughter taking the test.

When Joe Cason's daughter, Hannah, dived into her senior swimming season, her expectations were high. She'd worked all summer improving her times, hoping to be a contributor on the St. Helens High School swim team. But she never swam a race.

"I was shocked that it was a requirement. That it was mandatory," she said about the required neurological test.

Like all student athletes at St. Helens, Hannah was required to take a new test, a computerized neurocognitive test that measures memory and reaction times.

Students take it at the beginning of the season to establish a baseline. If they suffer a concussion, doctors use the test - plus other criteria - to decide when they can safely return to play. In the St. Helens School District, students cannot opt out, even with a parent waiver.

"That really sent some shivers up my spine," said Hannah's father, Joe, who had concerns about the Pennsylvania Company (Impact Testing) storing his daughter's data and for how long. But the district wouldn’t budge and Hannah was kicked off the swim team.

"I was being challenged," Joe said. "That's what it felt like more than anything else was that my parental authority and my decision-making was being challenged."

Using a list on the company's website, KATU News contacted 50 school districts in Oregon and Washington that use the test. Nineteen do allow students to opt out with parent permission. Twenty-one districts do not. And 11 more say they require the test, but they admit no student has ever refused and they're not sure how they would react.

Outgoing St. Helens Superintendent Patricia Adams made no apologies for the district's policy.

"If you have the right to say that you don't want them tested, we have the right to say you won't be participating in our sports," she said.

While touting the test as an important tool for trainers, other districts - like Beaverton - still give parents the final say.

"Our risk-management office felt it was really important that there be an opt-out clause for parents to say, I don't feel like it's necessary," said Mike Sanderson, Westview High School Athletic Director.

"I love my children, and I'm not going to see harm come to them if I can avoid it, said Joe Cason. "If that means storage of data on them, down the road that can possibly fall into the wrong hands, I'm not going to have that happen."

You may be wondering how this policy is any different than a parent opting out of required immunizations for their child. Well, St. Helens Superintendent Patricia Adams says while immunizations are governed by state law, concussion testing is a local school board decision.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, high school football has the highest incidence of concussions. But girls have higher concussion rates than boys in similar sports. Symptoms of a concussion usually resolve in 7 to 10 days, but some athletes may take weeks or months to fully recover.