The National Football League and the NFL Players Association agreed on the changes to the league’s concussion protocol, the two parties announced Saturday.
While the investigation into Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa determined that Miami’s medical staff and unaffiliated medical professional followed the “step-by-step” process of the league’s protocol, the joint statement between the NFL and the NFLPA agreed that the “outcome” in the case “is not what was intended when Protocols were drafted” in 2013.
In doing so, the new protocol will include the term “ataxia” as part of the “mandatory no-go” symptoms. Per the statement, ataxia is defined as the “abnormality of balance and stability, motor coordination or dysfunctional speech caused by a neurological issue.” If a player shows any signs of ataxia during the concussion protocol, he will not be allowed to return to the game and will “receive the follow-up care” mandated by the league’s protocol.
