The New Jersey senate has unanimously approved the steroid bill sponsored by Senator Richard Codey. Voting 38-0, the bill is now headed to the assembly and hopefully signed into law by Governor Christie. New Jersey is one of the few states that continuously implement an anti-steroid program. Illinois is also determined to prevent athletes in taking any performance enhancer. However, the recent development in Texas may put the steroid program in peril due to lack of funds. There is a proposal to reduce or totally remove the budget allocated for steroid testing and shift it to other steroid prevention activities.

In an interview, Senator Codey said that it is unfortunate that some of the kids look for shortcuts in their training and follow the bad examples set by a few professional athletes by turning to steroids to enhance their game. “We need to give our student-athletes the resources and support they need to just say no to steroids and performance-enhancing supplements which could lead to serious medical complications later in life,” said Codey.

The bill does not only cover for steroid testing but at the same time steroid education and other programs that will involve coaches. The focus is on educating the athletes on steroids and other performance enhancing drugs. The program will also tackle health nutrition and proper exercise for athletes to be more fit in the natural way.

Under the bill, the state Department of Education and the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association will be required to randomly test athletes taking part in championship tournaments. School officials have different opinions on the steroid program. Some are worried that it may incite fear on the athletes and the concern about their privacy but many are still supporting the program. Last season, the NJSIAA conducted 500 tests on athletes but have not found any student athlete positive for steroids. Although the test is a little bit expensive, they still believe that it is an effective deterrent for student athletes to take steroids.

The comprehensive steroid program will also give additional responsibilities to the State education officials. They will be required to include information about student steroid abuse on its Web site and include steroid awareness in academic standards. On the other hand, the NJSIAA will be given the task of conducting annual workshops for high school coaches for them to be well informed on the latest trend and information on steroids and other performance enhancing substances.

The bill recognizes the important role of coaches by helping the athlete avoid drugs. This can be done by developing and implementing plans that will educate student athletes about the dangers of using steroids. They will help students to promote positive body image and healthy eating. “Coaches can and should play an important part in teaching their athletes how to compete in their sport in a healthy and safe way. That means we have more than just an obligation to teach our kids the fundamentals of the game,” said the Senator.

In addition to NJSIAA’s task, they have to intensify public information dissemination which may include advertisements discouraging steroid and supplement use in any printed material distributed at school sports competitions. The 3rd week of September will be designated as “Steroid Awareness Week” and the Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse would have to produce an anti-steroid poster which will be distributed in all schools.

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