Pennsylvania Houses passes new rules for concussions

The Pennsylvania House on Tuesday passed the Safety In Youth Sports Act, which calls for Pennsylvania high school or junior high school athletes who suffer a concussion or brain injury to be cleared by a medical professional trained in concussion management before returning to the sport, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

The bill passed by a 169-29 vote.

If passed by the Senate and signed into law, the legislation sponsored by Rep. Tim Briggs (D., Montgomery) also would require athletes and their parents or guardians to sign a concussion and head-injury information sheet before participating in a sport. It also would require coaches to complete a concussion certification course.

"The Safety In Youth Sports Act is the most comprehensive, advanced and reasonable bill in the nation when it comes to concussion management in youth sports," Micky Collins, assistant director of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's sports-medicine concussion program, said in a statement