Zeldin eyes school athletics health bill
Suffolk High School wrestling match between St. Anthony's and Hauppauge. (Dec. 19, 2009) Credit: Patrick E. McCarthy
State Sen. Lee Zeldin, a former middle-school wrestler, said Tuesday he is developing legislation to require interscholastic wrestling mats to be cleaned before practices and meets and forbid athletes with bacterial diseases from participating until they are cleared by a doctor.
"Even at the junior high level, the practices would really make you sweat," he said of his days wrestling at William Floyd Middle School in Moriches. "The people around me, you'd see them catching ringworm. This is not a problem that just popped up now."
Hauppauge High School wrestler Nick Mauriello Jr. contracted the life-threatening bacterial disease MRSA after competing in a series of wrestling tournaments last month. No one has determined how he contracted the infection.
But the proposal by Zeldin (R-Shirley) came as many lawmakers said that new state legislation was unnecessary. Currently, there are no regulations governing the hygiene of wrestling participants or the cleanliness of mats. The State Department of Education offers "comprehensive guidance" to prevent the spread of MRSA in schools, but regulation would require an act by the State Legislature, department officials said.
Sen. Kemp Hannon (R-Garden City), the Senate's Health Committee chairman, said that it would be better for state and local health, education and interscholastic athletics officials to develop guidelines to protect student athletes. "We have a budget right now that proposes to take hundreds of millions of dollars out of local [school] aid," he said. "A mandate at the moment would not be appropriate and may not work."
Assemb. Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan), chairman of the Assembly's Health Committee, also opposed new legislation, saying "I would be very surprised if health and education authorities don't have ample rule-making authority already."
But Assemb. Charles Lavine (D-Glen Cove), a health committee member, argued the state Health Department should consider new regulations. "This is a looming crisis," he said, "that demands consideration."
Nonetheless, state Health Department spokesman Jeffrey Hammond said existing regulations are sufficient and the department is "not planning to change the rules and regulations or public health law" in the wake of Mauriello's illness.
Officials from the Nassau and Suffolk health departments said they are not responsible for wrestling mats' cleanliness. Hospitals are not required to report individual MRSA cases, only outbreaks, local health officials said.
New York's interscholastic wrestling coaches are required to conduct skin checks and follow national wrestling federation standards for cleanliness, said Nina Van Erk, executive director of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association. She also said state legislation governing the sport is not necessary.
Assemb. Michael Fitzpatrick (R-St. James), whose district includes Hauppauge, said that, while he is investigating Mauriello's illness, he is inclined to resist new laws in response to specific incidents. "We pay these school administrators and educators a lot of money to make these important decisions. Let's see what they come up with."
