For years, top medical experts in the National Football League have consistently refused to acknowledge any link between football and long-term brain damage. However, an investigation recently uncovered that the NFL’s retirement board paid disability awards to at least three former football players, after concluding that their traumatic brain injuries were indeed caused by their time in the NFL.
According to the reports, the retirement board paid roughly $2 million in disability benefits in the late 1990s and 2000s to the players in question. The documents proving these payments were uncovered in a joint investigation by PBS’s “Frontline” show, and ESPN’s “Outside the Lines”. The approvals were outlined in unpublished medical records and documents related to Mike Webster’s 1999 disability claim.
This discovery could be key evidence in a recent class-action lawsuit against the league that has been filed in Pennsylvania’s Eastern District of the U.S. District Court. The lawsuit contends that the NFL has propagated falsified, industry-funded research for years to support its position that football does not increase the risk of long-term brain damage. The lawsuit currently involves close to 4,000 former players.
If you have suffered a brain injury caused by another party’s negligence or wrongdoing, you may have a right to compensation. Please contact The Cochran Firm today to schedule a free case evaluation with an experienced brain injury lawyer.
