Legal Clips, [September 2006]
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) is considering random testing for steroids and growth hormones in state finals for football, basketball, track, and other selected sports. Athletes testing positive would be banned from competition for one year and would have to pass a follow-up test before returning. Those refusing the test would be barred from competing. Because testing would not be completed until the championships conclude, athletes in individual sports who fail would forfeit their medals, but school teams in which a team member tests positive would not have to surrender their trophy. Currently only New Jersey has implemented random drug testing for high school athletes that includes scanning for steroids. Beginning this fall, the New Jersey program will test 500 athletes for approximately 80 banned substances from amphetamines to steroids, at a cost of $90,000. IHSA assistant executive director Kurt Gibson believes testing will deter high school athletes from using the harmful drugs and maintain competitive balance among the association's 750 member schools. Some school officials are skeptical that the program is worth the estimated cost of $175 per test. Others who support testing argue that it will dissuade high school athletes from entering college athletics dependent on performance-enhancing drugs. Mr. Gibson agrees that steroid use often begins in high school because of the lure of college athletic scholarships.
The America Medical Association reports that youth steroid use has increased from 2.1% percent of high school seniors in 1991 to 4% in 2002. While
AMA officials agree that steroid use is best stopped early, they question whether the money would be better spent on educational approaches. They also point out that a false positive can label an athlete. "We're not endorsing testing programs, though we're not opposing them either," says AMA president-elect Dr. Ron Davis. "We just think there are concerns that need to be addressed." Mr. Gibson notes that IHSA has beefed up its educational programs, but insists testing still needs to be considered. Acknowledging that cost is a primary concern for school officials, he says IHSA is looking into private grants and other sources and will not pass the cost onto member schools. Meanwhile, IHSA and other state associations will be monitoring the New Jersey program. While Bob Baly, assistant director of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA), cautions that it may be years before the program's success can be gauged, he believes the threat of tests will have an immediate impact on steroid use and will raise people's consciousness.
Chicago Tribune
By Jan Dennis
[Link to full story]
[Editor’s Note: For information on the New Jersey program, adopted on the heels of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study finding about 6% of U.S. high school students, or about 300,000, took steroids in 2003 without a doctor's prescription, see below.]
[NSBA School Law pages on NJSIAA statewide steroid testing plan]