Pubdate: Mon, 12 Jun 2006
Source: Press & Sun Bulletin (NY)
Copyright: 2006 Press & Sun Bulletin
Contact:  http://www.pressconnects.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/878
Author: George Basler
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Test)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)
Note: Article combines testing issues - steroids and "other illegal drugs"

TIER SCHOOLS COOL TOWARD TESTING TEENS FOR STEROIDS

N.J. First State With Policy On Screening High School Athletes

ALBANY -- New Jersey last week became the first state in the country 
to adopt a policy to test high school athletes for steroids, an issue 
New York senators have approved numerous times since 1997 but which 
the Assembly has not supported.

Anabolic-steroid use has been a hot topic in the United States, 
especially among professional baseball players. Last year, Congress 
held a hearing on performance-enhancing drugs in the Major Leagues.

Concern that the national attention could spur more young people to 
take steroids has been filtering down to high school sports. 
Officials worry that the promise of bulging biceps and pectoral 
superpower overwhelms the threat of Adam's apples for girls, breasts 
for boys and other serious health effects.

But the idea of schools testing student athletes for steroids 
received a skeptical reception from Southern Tier school officials.

The proposal is "ludicrous," said Tom Hahne, athletic director in the 
Vestal Central School District. Parents, not the school district, 
have the responsibility to take care of their child's health issues, he said.

"As a parent, I want my child's health concerns dealt with within my 
family," the Vestal athletic director said. Schools already give 
physicals to student athletes, but these physicals focus on making 
sure students are physically able to compete, not checking for drugs, he said.

The New York legislation passed the Senate and is in the Assembly 
Codes Committee. If it passes, the state Education Department would 
develop guidelines for schools. If a district opted in, athletes 
would sign consent forms, as would parents if they were under 18.

The legislation would establish a new felony crime of criminal sale 
of an anabolic steroid to a minor.

The goal of the New York legislation is to ensure a level playing 
field during competition and encourage users to seek treatment, said 
Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg, D-Nassau County, a sponsor.

"The purpose and intent of this bill is to protect kids," he said. 
"Nobody's punishing anybody."

Since steroid testing is an expensive proposition -- more than $100 
for a comprehensive analysis -- the bill calls for a $5 million 
school grant program.

The Cost Of Testing

Nationally, 13 percent of high schools had drug-testing policies for 
illegal or prohibited substances in 2003, according to a survey by 
the National Federation of State High School Associations, the 
National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association and the 
National Center for Drug Free Sport. Only 29 percent checked for 
anabolic steroids.

New Jersey's state athletic association voted this week to implement 
a policy to randomly test athletes who qualify for championship play. 
New Mexico has a pilot test program in four high schools, said Kay 
Hawes of the Center for Drug Free Sport. Florida, Texas, Michigan and 
California are among other states that have considered such testing.

The Susquehanna Valley Central School District in Conklin approved a 
policy in 2000 but never implemented it because there was a community 
outcry against it, said then-school board President Sandra Ruffo. 
There were issues of confidentiality, feelings that athletes were 
unfairly targeted, and complaints that parents, not schools, should 
handle children's substance-abuse problems, she said. The district 
was not focusing on steroids, but on alcohol and commonly used illegal drugs.

If the state mandates steroid testing, SV would have to comply, 
Superintendent Carol S. Boyce said. But the district would have to do 
a great deal of research before accepting any grant money to do 
testing for steroids.

She said she would have to gauge community feeling before considering 
it. That would involve discussions with coaches, parents, booster 
clubs, school nurses and health teachers about the idea, she said.

Education in health classes, and by coaches and parents, is 
preferable to testing, she said. "I think being proactive far 
outweighs the advantages of being reactive," she said.

Hahne agreed; schools are educational institutions, and teaching 
about the dangers of steroid use in health classes is appropriate, he 
said. The district has pamphlets on the harmful effects of steroids 
that coaches can give to players. But school districts shouldn't be 
in the monitoring business.

The Fort Edward Union Free School District in Washington County 
conducts drug testing on athletes and is the only one state Public 
High School Athletic Association staff said they knew of.

The district started testing a number of years ago and stopped, then 
restarted two years ago, Superintendent Stan Maziejka said. One-third 
of athletes in each sport are tested each season for marijuana, 
cocaine and opiates. Tests are about $35 each; 98 percent of athletes 
were clean last year and 100 percent this year, he said.

Testing for steroids too would be expensive, so the district probably 
would apply for a state grant, he said.

Testing 'A Deterrent'

Studies show steroid use is not rampant among teens. Four percent of 
high schoolers surveyed last year said they had used the drug at 
least once, compared to a low of 2.2 percent in 1993 and a high of 
6.1 percent in 2003, a new report by the federal Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention found.

"The purpose of drug testing is to deter the student athlete from 
taking the substance in the first place," Hawes said. "They 
(students) tell us it's a deterrent ..."

But David Garbarino, director of health, physical education and 
athletics for the Binghamton City School district, said he's 
confident that steroid use is not widespread here. He also noted that 
testing is expensive, and the district would have to hire someone to 
administer the tests.

Also, there is a question of what would happen to a student who 
tested positive, he said. What would his punishment be? Would the 
student be banned forever from school sports, or for just a season?

Besides cost, some districts have shied away because of civil-liberties issues.

The New York Civil Liberties Union opposes the current legislation 
because it would "sink $5 million into testing" and does not have an 
education component, said Donna Lieberman, executive director. "The 
scope of the bill goes way beyond steroids and provides for random 
testing of some athletes for a whole range of drugs," she said. 
Athletes enjoy a different status in school, but they don't lose 
their right to privacy when they hit the ball field, Lieberman said.

Jerry Diehl of the National Federation of State High School 
Associations disagreed. "Sports are a privilege, not a right," he said.

A 1995 Supreme Court decision found that random testing of student 
athletes was constitutional.

Lloyd Mott of the New York State Public High School Athletic 
Association said his group emphasizes education and prevention over 
testing but does not oppose the legislation because it would be 
voluntary and guidelines would be uniform.

"We're still of the belief that we're in the business of education 
and that we can prevent these things from happening through 
education," he said.

Gannett News service writer Cara Matthews and staff writer George 
Basler contributed to this report.

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By The Numbers

Steroid statistics, based on a 2003 survey of athletic directors:

* About 13 percent of the nation's high schools had a drug-testing 
policy in place and another 17 percent wanted one.

* Of those, 63 percent tested student athletes and 20 percent tested 
all students.

* Testing was mandatory in 82 percent of schools and the method of 
testing was done randomly in 76 percent of the schools.

* Marijuana was the drug most tested for, with 95 percent of schools 
testing for the substance. Others tested were cocaine (86 percent), 
amphetamine/methamphetamine (85 percent), opiates (67 percent) and 
alcohol (62 percent). Twenty-nine percent tested for anabolic steroids.

* The most common reasons given for not testing were budget 
constraints, lack of school board approval, legal concerns and lack 
of parent approval.

Source: National Federation of State High School Associations, the 
National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association and the 
National Center for Drug Free Sport.

WHAT ARE ANABOLIC STEROIDS?

Anabolic steroids are synthetic substances related to male sex 
hormones that promote the growth of skeletal muscle. There are more 
than 100 kinds, but they require a prescription to be used in this 
country. Most that are used illegally in the United States are 
smuggled from other countries, illegally diverted from pharmacies in 
this country or synthesized in clandestine laboratories.

Side effects include acne, baldness, heart attacks and strokes, 
tumors and blood-filled cysts on the liver and stunted growth.

Testing for the most commonly used steroids can run under $100 per 
test. Tests for steroids and other illegal substances, like cocaine, 
are about $150 each.

Anabolic steroids are different from steroids used to control 
inflammation in the body.

Sources: National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Center for Drug Free Sport.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman