The National Football League improperly attempted to influence National Institutes of Health grants for brain injury studies, according to a report from Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The findings come as the league is criticized for its response to concussions and the condition chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a neurological condition that can be caused by repetitive blows to the head.
The report showed that the NFL agreed to fund part of a brain injury study at NIH as part of a $30 million donation.
“This investigation confirms the NFL inappropriately attempted to use its unrestricted gift as leverage to steer funding away from one of its critics,” said Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J. “Since its research agreement with NIH was clear that it could not weigh in on the grant selection process, the NFL should never have tried to influence that process.”
The report notes that NIH wasn’t swayed by the league’s attempts.
Democrats also found that the nonprofit Foundation for NIH, which acts as an intermediary between NIH and the NFL, did not properly fulfill its role.
In December 2015, ESPN reported that the NFL backed out of funding the NIH study because of objections over which researchers got grants. “The NIH selected a grant led by Boston University researcher Dr. Robert Stern to receive $16 million in funding,” the report added.
Boston University has been a leader in research on the link between football and CTE.
The league has “significant concerns re: BU and their ability to be unbiased and collaborative,” according to an e-mail from Elliot Pellman, a medical administrator for the NFL, to the president of the Foundation for NIH.
The foundation forwarded the e-mail to NIH. The official responsible for giving out the grant, Dr. Walter Koroshetz, wrote back that it was aware of the history and that its process was “not tainted and all above board.”
Pallone said the interactions with NIH were part of a long-standing pattern of the NFL attempting to influence research into sports-related head trauma.
During a hearing on concussions before the full committee, the NFL’s top safety officer admitted there was a link between CTE and football.
The NFL did not immediately return a request for comment.
