Westchester's task force for high school sports head injuries

The dark side of sports: head injuries and concussions are happening now more than ever among young athletes. Some 45 million kids play organized sports every year and close to 4 million of them will suffer from a concussion, according to the latest numbers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Westchester Country Executive Rob Astorino formed a concussion task force made up of coaches, athletic directors, and brain specialists. Their job is to develop a program for sidelines management and post-injury treatment for high school athletes.

In the state of New York, students with a suspected concussion must be removed from the game and examined by a health care professional. But students may not get the proper care they need because there is no mandate for an athletic trainer to be present at a game.

The task force wants school officials to make sure the athletes medical information gets from the sidelines to the ER and back to the school, so coaches can keep them safe.

A free conference on concussions for parents will be held on August 20 at the Westchester County Center.