New Jersey adopts statewide steroid testing policy
The New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) has adopted a statewide steroid testing policy for student-athletes from member schools. The move makes New Jersey the first state to implement such a policy. "New Jersey will serve as a model plan for other (states)," says Robert F. Kanaby, executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). According to a NFHS survey, several states have considered a comprehensive testing policy but have not adopted it. The survey notes that while some individual schools have instituted drug testing, few test for steroids. The impetus for the new policy came from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study that showed about 6% of U.S. high school students, or about 300,000, took steroids in 2003 without a doctor's prescription. The plan, which will go into effect in fall 2006, provides for random testing of student-athletes who qualify for team or individual state championships. Those who test positive will suffer a one-year loss of eligibility. NJSIAA executive director Steven Timko expects to test about 500 athletes, with 60% of tests conducted on athletes competing in football, wrestling, track and field, swimming, lacrosse, and baseball, because NCAA data indicate that athletes in those sports are more likely to use steroids. The State of New Jersey and NJSIAA each will give $50,000 toward defraying the $150 to $200 cost for each test. Gary Wadler, a physician and drug-testing expert, says sanctions on the prep level should not be the main priority as in Olympics and pro testing. "If you start suspending high school football players, that's going to break the bank," he says of possible litigation. "I don't see it as a sanctioning issue as much as ... educational." Administrators and coaches say they are encouraged by New Jersey's move, but they cite the cost of administering the test, the array of drugs testers must look for, and possible legal concerns as stumbling blocks to more states adopting such a policy.
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Editor's Note: he CDC study is linked below, as is a 2003 survey by NFHS about school district testing practices.]
[CDC study][NFHS survey]