Committee lays over bill seeking stronger catastrophic coverage for student athletes

Senate File 2685, presented March 24, asks the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) to secure higher catastrophic accident medical insurance and to expand coverage parameters; the bill was laid over for possible inclusion in the omnibus policy bill.

Sponsor Senator Fouad Dibble said the bill responds to families of student athletes who suffered catastrophic injuries and described two high‑profile cases: Jack Jablonski (2011 hockey injury) and Ethan Glenn (2022 football injury). Parents of injured students described long‑term costs for specialized vans, home modifications, long‑term therapy and caregiving, and disputed claim denials by the insurer named in the current MSHSL policy.

Multiple family members testified, including Michael and Leslie Jablonski and Corey and Cassidy Glenn (Ethan’s parents). They described claims disputes with the league’s policyholder and said current limits and coverage terms left them to pay large, ongoing expenses. The League’s executive director, Eric Martins, and legal representative Roger Arntzen described the MSHSL’s procurement process, the market limits on available policies and recent changes: the board purchased a one‑year policy in 2024–25 and raised the maximum benefit to $3,000,000.

Arntzen told the committee that a policy that categorically forbids denials does not exist in the commercial market. He said Minnesota’s current coverage compares to peer states and that moving from $3,000,000 to $5,000,000 would cost roughly an additional $125,000 annually; the bill’s $10,000,000 figure was not priced during testimony. Lawmakers and families pressed the League to pursue better coverage and to consider retroactive remedies where feasible. The committee laid the bill over for further work and possible omnibus inclusion.