Former NFL players go to court over concussion fund rules for diagnoses 

A group of former football players went to court yesterday challenging the NFL Concussion Fund over a rule about how neurological diagnoses can be made. Under the current rule, players who receive diagnoses of dementia, ALS, Alzheimer’s, or Parkinson’s can be paid out from the $1 billion fund, which has already doled out nearly $500 million in settlements. The fund’s administrator said that roughly $46 million was paid out on diagnoses made by just four physicians, which is suggestive of “doctor shopping,” and a federal judge in April suggested a new rule that these diagnoses be made by a doctor within 150 miles of a player’s home. Players have pushed back, saying there aren’t enough doctors to fit this criteria, and lawyers for players are saying that players should have the right to choose whichever physician they want.