Former NFL players filing workers’ compensation claims are nothing new.
Currently, there are 700 active claims going on in California, a state workers’ compensation system seen by many to work in favor of injured athletes. Most of these claims involve knee and shoulder injuries sustained during an athletic career.
Most are on track to receive standard lump-sum payments ranging between $100,000 and $200,000.
This latest claim on behalf of Ralph Wenzel is groundbreaking in that it links the former Pittsburgh Steelers and San Diego Chargers lineman’s dementia with his time in the NFL some 40 years ago.
According to Wenzel’s wife, Dr. Perfetto, the dementia her husband developed in his late-50s caused him to prematurely move into an assisted living facility at age 64. During his football career, Wenzel claims he sustained more concussions than he could count. Medical research has shown links between concussions and depression, mental decline and Alzheimer’s disease.
The New York Times is also reporting on research from Boston University and West Virginia University regarding the presence of what’s known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy in the brain tissue of many deceased players. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy is a disease whose only know cause is head trauma, which results in progressive cognitive decline.
Dr. Perfetto’s main reason for filing the claim is to make guaranteed care for retired players available to those who need it and don’t qualify for the NFL’s plan, known as the 88 Plan.
Many families of former NFL players do receive cost-reimbursements. But since many of them are unable to obtain long-term care insurance because of the elevated risk of cognitive or neurological damage, their families have to bear the crippling financial costs.
The workers’ compensation attorney representing Wenzel and his wife Dr. Perfetto compares head trauma from football to asbestos exposure. Both of these are workplace dangers that eventually results in chronic illnesses. These illnesses may take decades to show themselves.