I was flabbergasted at the announcement made regarding the NFL settlement decision on the concussion suit.
I have been working on a settlement for several years in a California (CA) Workers Comp case that only recently came to a close. I was poked, prodded, analyzed and put under a microscope. The end results were “mental impairment caused by continuous trauma to the head.” The folio of information and exams is about 8 inches thick!
I had already been denied NFL disability because I filed “too late” and was “too old” to qualify (!), plus their evaluation group said “NOT QUALIFIED.” They basically said if I wasn’t happy with the decision, sue us.
The point I am making is now all of us with concerns are supposed to line up once again at the exam line and go through like cattle, then someone will mark us with a big rubber stamp: Maybe a little impaired; A lot impaired; Somewhat impaired; Very impaired. We will then go to the appropriate exam room to be examined again. And several months later – maybe – somebody will eventually release a statement based on the study and exam that says we do not qualify based on the settlement terms.
I can only hope the guys who have suffered needlessly because of neglect of the system can get a little help ASAP. I am not going to go through the process to prove what has already been proven by Amen Clinic, the CA Comp examiners, and every other study to this point in time. The game caused head trauma and the injuries have created problems for many of us.
I guess, my final point is this: Is it just me or are the NFL Disability rules just the opposite of this settlement’s rules? The settlement actually states anyone who played is supposedly eligible for retribution. Meanwhile, our so-called Disability Program has arbitrary specifics and denies payment based on opinion from a group of former players, who are not even qualified to judge any health issue. Is anyone else confused?
Isn’t it time we were treated as humans and not like the gladiators from ancient Roman times? We sure weren’t expected to go out on the field and give half efforts – we would have been cut from the team in a heartbeat! We each played at high levels of intensity and we all did what was asked of us by our coaches and the system.
We’ve been had again by the caring owners and the Commish…
Thank you for the chance to share my thoughts.
Larry Kaminski played center for the Denver Broncos from 1966-1973. This article is reprinted here with the permission of Dave Pear’s Blog.