NEW YORK (AP) -The NFL players union has requested the removal of a doctor as co-chairman of the league’s committee on concussions, claiming he is too biased to lead the group, the New York Times reported Friday.
Dr. Ira Casson has tried to discredit independent and league-sponsored evidence linking NFL careers with heightened risk for dementia and cognitive decline, saying more research is needed.
Casson has served on the committee since it was formed in 1994 and became co-chairman in 2007. Since then, he has been conducting a study of retired players he said will provide the only reliable evidence on brain injuries in the sport when it is released in 2012 or 2013.
The study has been criticized by several outside experts in epidemiology and dementia research who say the 120 test subjects are too few to find any substantial link between football and brain injuries, and that Casson’s role in conducting all neurological exams in the study is improper.
Union official George Atallah told The Times that NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith has twice spoken to commissioner Roger Goodell about removing Casson from the committee.
om the players to request this,” Atallah said. “His removal is not a single act. His removal is something that we feel is more of a move by the league to move into the next phase of protecting players and making the game safer.”
NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in an e-mail to The Times that the league would not comment on Casson or the request for his removal.
“We can tell you that we have already informed the NFLPA of a number of steps we are considering relating to player health and safety,” Aiello wrote. “We don’t know what purpose is served by Mr. Smith raising this specific point publicly at this time.”
Add A Comment