Following disgraced doctor Larry Nassar’s sentencing of 40 to 175 years in prison for seven counts of criminal sexual conduct, Congress passed new legislation aimed at protecting young athletes, according to HuffPost. The bill tries to combat what allowed Nassar's abuse to continue for so many years, including his unsupervised visits with young patients and many officials' failure to report accusations.
The bill was sponsored by Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein from California and passed with a 406-3 vote. It’s now awaiting Donald Trump’s signature to make it law. “As the Nassar sentencing comes to a close and the Olympic games quickly approach, we are reminded of the importance of protecting the safety and well-being of all of our athletes,” Representative Susan Brooks of Indiana said.
There are three parts to the new bill that work to prevent the future abuse of young athletes. First of all, any assault allegations made to coaches, trainers, or other officials must be reported to the police within 24 hours. This could have helped many women who reported their allegations to MSU officials who never reported the accusations to police.
Next, the bill extends the statute of limitations to up to 10 years after a victim realizes they were abused. In Nassar’s case, many of his victims did not understand that they had been abused until other athletes came forward. Finally, the bill prohibits any athletes under the age of 18 from being alone with an adult without a parent or guardian. Nassar’s abuse took place during private medical exams with his patients. Had a parent or guardian been present, some of the abuse could have been prevented.
After Nassar's sentencing last week, officials from USA Gymnastics, MSU, and the U.S. Olympic committee resigned. NCAA has opened an investigation on MSU, and USOC is investigating USA Gymnastics.
