According to a report, the NFL and the NFL Players Association are “very close” to an agreement for a new drug testing program that would include testing for human growth hormone.
ProFootballTalk.com, citing “a source with knowledge of the situation,” reported that the league and union very nearly have a comprehensive agreement on drug testing that would include testing for hGH.
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The lack of an agreement on blood testing for hGH had delayed implementation of other testing, including a likely shift of substances such as amphetamines from the performance-enhancing drug program to the substance-abuse policy.
An agreement doesn’t mean testing will begin any time soon. The first thing that has to happen is a study on NFL players to determine natural levels of hGH in players.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., wrote a letter to both sides today calling for the league to get a deal done on hGH testing:
"“With the new season set to kick off tomorrow night, I write to express profound disappointment that random testing for human growth hormone (hGH) has still not been implemented in the NFL despite all sides committing to it more than three years ago in the 2011 collective bargaining agreement.“This inexplicable failure should be embarrassing to both owners and players, as it erodes fans’ confidence in the integrity of a great American sport, and sends a dangerous message to young athletes that there are no consequences for hGH use by the NFL players they admire and seek to emulate.“Adding to the urgency of this situation is a new national study published in July by the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids finding that experimentation with hGH among American teenagers has doubled in the last year. … This study should serve as a wake-up call to the entire NFL community, that it must fulfill its responsibilities to set the standard for clean competition and serve as a positive, healthy example to young athletes across the country and the world.”"
Either McCain knew an agreement was close or, more likely, he is the beneficiary of good timing.