High school steroid bills await action in Senate, By: Tim Martin
May 28, 2006
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Bills aimed at keeping steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs out of Michigan schools again are advancing in the state Legislature.
The legislation would require school districts to come up with anti-steroid policies as part of their athletic eligibility requirements.
Other bills would add steroids to the list of drugs prohibited within 1,000 feet of schools or parks and change the state's sentencing guidelines to cover performance-enhancing drugs.
The legislation could be discussed by the state Senate this week. The package of bills, which were approved by a Senate committee last week, passed the House more than a year ago.
"This is just another way to keep kids healthy — to keep steroids out of their hands," said state Rep. Leslie Mortimer, a Republican from Horton and one of the legislation's sponsors.
Athletes of both sexes have used steroids to get stronger and faster. Some research indicates girls as young as middle school have used steroids to try to get a more athletic, toned look. But the drugs have long-term health consequences that have led to their banishment in several sports leagues at both the professional and collegiate levels.
Several states are beginning to address steroid use at the high school and middle school levels.
Steroid use has been linked to health problems including heart disease, liver cancer, sterility and mood swings. Using most steroids without a doctor's prescription is illegal.
The Michigan legislation would require that the state Department of Community Health put together a list of performance-enhancing drugs and distribute them to schools. But the penalties for using the drugs would be left to local school districts, leaving the possibility of different sanctions from district to district.
The proposed legislation would be a first step toward uniformity, said Rep. Dan Acciavatti, a Republican from Macomb County's Chesterfield Township. Schools would be operating from the same list of banned substances.
"Right now, we have nothing," said Acciavatti, who sponsors one of the bills in the package. "This would be a step forward."
Also next week, the House and Senate will begin the process of compromising on the differences between their state government budget bills for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. The House Appropriations Committee is scheduled to review several budget bills that have passed the Senate.
