Do no harm: Who should bear the costs of retired NFL players’ medical bills?

[Idgit]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sport...ae88ba-b70e-11e2-b568-6917f6ac6d9d_story.html

Tough draw for Reggie Williams. I wonder if it's true that the Bengals sent him a Band-Aid.

 

[DBOY3141]

Tough decision. Anyone but the tax payers that's for sure.

I feel bad for these guys, but at the end of the day, they knew what they were getting into, there are benefits and a downside to everything we choose to do in life.

 

[Questfor6]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sport...ae88ba-b70e-11e2-b568-6917f6ac6d9d_story.html

Tough draw for Reggie Williams. I wonder if it's true that the Bengals sent him a Band-Aid.

I'd say it is, they're the cheapest organization in football also not the brightest at who they sign either.

 

[Future]

I just simply do not understand how the NFL does not provide these guys with lifetime insurance. I know its expensive, but it has to be done. Owner greed is the only reason I can think of.

 

[Idgit]

I'd say it is, they're the cheapest organization in football also not the brightest at who they sign either.

You see the picture of the knee? What a mess he's got there.

 

[visionary]

I just simply do not understand how the NFL does not provide these guys with lifetime insurance. I know its expensive, but it has to be done. Owner greed is the only reason I can think of.

lifetime insurance is a bad idea for any company
it is that what took down GM

there is no easy answer

you feel sorry for players but the reality is that the players chose to play a violent sport so the person most responsible is the player himself

 

[Hoofbite]

You see the picture of the knee? What a mess he's got there.

It looks like hell. I'm actually shocked he still has it.

The first few pictures he's wearing shorts and you can't tell but once that knee becomes visible it looks horrid.

Williams says he is unable to qualify for most NFL disability benefits, and the Bengals — the only team for whom he played — are opposing him in a workers’ compensation claim that would provide for his medical care. These tedious battles have transformed him from a league champion into a critic. “All they’ve done is fought me on everything,” he says, “including even sending me a Band-Aid.”

How is that even possible? The guy looks like he has 5 knees in his right leg. Pretty crummy of the Bengals to just dismiss him as well. It'd be one thing if maybe he has a single surgery but he's had tons of them.

The reality is the teams should be paying for these guys. It seems as if they do pay for the one's who qualify but they should be paying for all of them.

If not them, guess who does have to pick up the tab. The same people who pay for all the other disable people without insurance.

The NFL has to have some sort of system in place. I'm just guessing but don't players contribute to a fund while they are playing? It just seems like these guys would have a certain amount of their salaries dedicated to going into a health fund with the team providing a matching amount.

 

[Doomsday101]

I think some kind of joint responsibility, players are paid high salary and they enter the league knowing the risk. I think players should pay into some type of plan as well as owners to help cover those who have retired from the game. Many of today’s players did not give a damn when it came to older players before them and the problems they faced, they only concerned themselves with their own deals

 

[visionary]

I think some kind of joint responsibility, players are paid high salary and they enter the league knowing the risk. I think players should pay into some type of plan as well as owners to help cover those who have retired from the game. Many of today’s players did not give a damn when it came to older players before them and the problems they faced, they only concerned themselves with their own deals

this is likely the most reasonable solution

 

[vta]

Does anyone else enjoy lifetime benefits after they retire? I know cops and firefighters get a nice golden handshake, but do they get health insurance as well?

It seems kind of odd for any one to get such things, what's the argument? A tough job doesn't cut it. There are plenty of demanding jobs, with no where near the kind of play these guys get, what makes their situation so special? Manual labor jobs destroy mens bodies and today they're lucky if they even get a pension, let alone health bennies.

Football isn't a necessity, it's entertainment. They're not building infrastructure and their compensation is astronomically larger than those that do.

 

[tomsanders921]

Does anyone else enjoy lifetime benefits after they retire? I know cops and firefighters get a nice golden handshake, but do they get health insurance as well?

It seems kind of odd for any one to get such things, what's the argument? A tough job doesn't cut it. There are plenty of demanding jobs, with no where near the kind of play these guys get, what makes their situation so special? Manual labor jobs destroy mens bodies and today they're lucky if they even get a pension, let alone health bennies.

Football isn't a necessity, it's entertainment. They're not building infrastructure and their compensation is astronomically larger than those that do.

They make plenty of money in their careers. It's their own fault if they are bankrupt a year after they retire. I don't feel sorry for someone who makes millions of dollars a year and then burns through it all shortly after they retire. It's called planning for the future. No point in buying 10 cars after you get your first paycheck.

 

[Hoofbite]

They make plenty of money in their careers. It's their own fault if they are bankrupt a year after they retire. I don't feel sorry for someone who makes millions of dollars a year and then burns through it all shortly after they retire. It's called planning for the future. No point in buying 10 cars after you get your first paycheck.

The guys who are currently struggling weren't making millions of dollars.

 

[Rogah]

I just simply do not understand how the NFL does not provide these guys with lifetime insurance. I know its expensive, but it has to be done. Owner greed is the only reason I can think of.

Everybody's greedy. The players are greedy and want the owners to pay for it. The owners are greedy and want the players to pay for it.

Considering even the minimum NFL salary is roughly 5 times what the average worker makes - and the average NFL salary is even higher - I have very little sympathy for these idiots who do absolutely nothing with regards to planning for their own futures.

 

[ROUSH8692]

The guys who are currently struggling weren't making millions of dollars.

Well then they shouldve thought about maybe another career if they couldnt plan a wortht retirement.

Devil's advocate: Why shouldn't taxpayers pay? They're the reason there are games. They watched all these games.

 

[CyberB0b]

Does anyone else enjoy lifetime benefits after they retire? I know cops and firefighters get a nice golden handshake, but do they get health insurance as well?

That is the way it used to be. My grandfather worked for an oil company and got a full pension until the day he died, including insurance coverage. My grandmother, who is still alive, receives half of his pension until the day she dies, and is still covered by his insurance.

 

[CrownCowboy]

I don't think I can say it any better than some here, but I'll give my two cents.

No, I don't think the Bengals or the NFL should pay this guy's medical bills or any other retired players. These men knew that injuries such as these could happen that could debilitate them years down the line before they decided to play professional football. They knew that this career choice was lucrative financially wise and understood the risk and reward and decided to take that chance.

I understand that some players make more than others, but there is no doubt that they all make a hell of alot more than the vast majority of what other men make doing something that can be pretty taxing on the body in it's own right and it doesn't come with lifetime insurance either.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

I honestly feel bad for some of these guys, but from a business perspective the NFLPA should have been on this years ago, not the owners.

 

[ShiningStar]

I just simply do not understand how the NFL does not provide these guys with lifetime insurance. I know its expensive, but it has to be done. Owner greed is the only reason I can think of.

so the guy making millions shouldnt put some aside for this? or get insurance, or create programs to help this? he should just take the money and cry later?

I think some lazy players are to be blamed as well