MINNEAPOLIS (June 9, 2022) – Players Health today announced enhancements to its abuse prevention offerings with a new anonymized incident reporting portal for youth and amateur athletes as well as a full investigation unit comprised licensed private investigators with a wide range of experience including former detectives.

“We can no longer allow abuse in sports to be suppressed or shrouded in stigma,” said founder and CEO Tyrre Burks. “Our aim is to help stop player abuse before it happens and create a safe avenue for reporting that’s treated with compassion and respect should it arise.”

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According to RAINN, every nine minutes, Child Protective Services substantiates or finds evidence for a claim of child sexual abuse and the perpetrator is known to the victim 94% of the time. It is also suggested by the Department of Justice that 86% of child abuse goes unreported altogether. Bringing accessible reporting technology to parents, athletes and coaches is one crucial step to reducing that statistic.

The innovative sports platform will now offer secure access to 24/7 anonymized reporting through email, chat box or online submission form. All incidents reported and identified as potential prohibited conduct of the sports organizations will be triaged within 24 hours of submission, triggering any one or combination of four outcomes – a call to the law enforcement, a call to a state’s authority for child protection, an incident report to the US Center for SafeSport or deploying the newly formed Players Health investigative team.

“Our incident reporting and investigations will give peace of mind, knowing any and all incidents are being handled by the appropriate agency and officials,” said Kyle Lubrano, chief athlete safety officer. “By having a rigorous, thorough reporting and investigation unit in place, if an incident does occur, everyone has a way for the incident to be objectively managed by an unbiased party, which keeps kids safer in the games they love.”

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This new reporting and investigation branch, developed with first-hand insights and protocols in mind, builds upon the existing coach and staff credentialing process. Before stepping on a court or field, staff and coaches go through concussion and abuse prevention trainings in addition to background checks to ensure they are prepared and safe to be on the field with athletes.

“Athlete safety is paramount for our staff, volunteers, coaches and parents,” said Deb Madden of the U.S. Premier Hockey League. “That Players Health not only proactively protects but also supports our families should something occur is what we look for in a partnership. People who treat our families and organizations as their own with the utmost care, compassion, and dignity.”

The Reporting and Investigations platform is available immediately to Players Health’s more than 2,500 existing clients including U.S. Youth Soccer, NFL Flag Football, i9 Sports, and USA Cheer. The feature is embedded in all contracts regardless of the selected product to ensure a cornerstone of safety.

For more on Players Health and its mission, visit www.playershealth.com.