NCAA student-athletes who use stimulant medications such as Adderall and Ritalin to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will soon need more than a basic doctor's note to gain a drug-testing exemption. In August, the NCAA will begin enforcing stricter documentation requirements.

"The policy itself regarding stimulants has not changed," says Mary Wilfert, NCAA Associate Director of Educational Affairs. "What is stricter is the requirement for documentation stating a full evaluation for ADHD has been conducted to achieve that diagnosis. This is in contrast to the practice in some cases of just prescribing a student-athlete stimulant medication to see how they respond, or diagnosing from very minimal observations."

Such documentation must now include:

• A description of the evaluation process explaining the assessment tools and procedures

• Confirmation and date of the diagnosis, and previous and ongoing history of ADHD treatment

• A statement that a non-banned ADHD alternative treatment was at least considered if a stimulant is currently prescribed

• Any information regarding follow-up and monitoring visits.

"The physicians on the committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS) who review the documentation were seeing more and more requests for medical exemptions without much evidence of an assessment, and they are concerned that these student-athletes aren't being evaluated or treated appropriately," says Wilfert. "Depression and other issues sometimes present themselves as ADHD symptoms and were not being considered in many cases. Stimulant medications may not be the appropriate treatment in those cases."

For more information on NCAA drug-testing medical exception procedures go to: http://www.ncaa.org/wps/ncaa?ContentID=481