By Thomas Hauser
It’s rare to find someone in boxing who genuinely cares about the sweet science . . . Understands the sport and business . . . Is ethical and smart . . . And is a good administrator.
David Berlin exemplified all of these qualities as executive director of the New York State Athletic Commission. Multiple sources say that he was removed from his position on Friday, May 13. That decision is bad for the commission and bad for boxing.
Berlin’s reported replacement, Eric Bentley, is an outstanding public servant. That’s all I’ll say about this matter at the present time. However, there’s another issue now facing the NYSAC that threatens the very survival of boxing in New York.
On April 14, 2016, New York governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill that had been passed by the state legislature. Most notably, the new law lifted the ban on mixed martial arts competitions that had been in place since 1997. The legislation also increased the number of commissioners on the New York State Athletic Commission from three to five, thereby creating two more patronage positions for the governor to fill.
In addition, the new law addressed several medical issues.
One positive provision in the legislation designates ring physicians as state employees rather than independent contractors, thereby halting an exodus of qualified ring doctors who were concerned that their own liability insurance wouldn’t protect them against claims of malpractice lodged against them by fighters.
Next, by way of a procedure known as a “Governor’s Amendment,” the new legislation shifts the cost of fighter medical examinations from the state to fighters and promoters. Previously, New York had been the only state in the country that paid for these examinations. The required exams (MRI, EKG, ophthalmologist’s report, and bloodwork) for a fighter making his pro debut in New York cost roughly $600. Thereafter, the cost varies depending on when each of the required tests was last conducted.
Now we get to the problem. And it’s a big one.
The Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act mandates that promoters purchase medical insurance on a card-by-card basis to pay a fighter’s medical expenses in conjunction with injuries sustained during a bout. But the Ali Act doesn’t specify a coverage minimum. That decision is left to the individual states.
Some states require as little as $2,500 in medical coverage with no death benefit. At the upper end of the spectrum, California, Nevada, and Texas require a $50,000 medical insurance policy for each fighter and death benefits ranging from $50,000 to $100,000. New York has the highest medical costs in the nation but, until recently, required only a $10,000 medical insurance policy for fighters.
The new legislation requires promoters to maintain a minimum $50,000 medical insurance policy and matching death benefit for each fighter.
Fine . . .
But the legislation also requires that all promoters of boxing matches and other martial arts competitions provide medical insurance or another form of financial guarantee acceptable to the commission with a MINIMUM LIMIT OF ONE MILLION DOLLARS to cover medical, surgical, and hospital care for the treatment of life-threatening brain injuries in situations where an identifiable causal link exists between the fighter’s participation a fight and the life-threatening brain injury.
This provision is well-intended, but it threatens the existence of boxing in New York. Virtually no insurer will write a medical insurance policy for a promoter for more than $50,000. The risk is too great. And it’s impossible to find an insurer who will underwrite a million-dollar medical policy for a fighter with an economically-viable premium.
UFC can afford to post a one-million-dollar bond. Most promoters can’t. And a one-million-dollar bond would only cover one fighter, not each fighter on a card.
Madison Square Garden and Barclays Center could cover the $1,000,000 risk by posting a bond. But they’re unlikely to do so, since that would put them on a slippery slope insofar as exposing themselves to liability for injuries to fighters is concerned.
The law is scheduled to become effective on September 1. If this problem is not resolved, boxing in New York will all but cease to exist.
There is a possible solution. The legislation in question states, “The commission may from time to time promulgate regulations to adjust the amount of such minimum limits.” But it’s not certain from the face and past history of the statute whether that adjustment can include a downward adjustment of the $1,000,000 requirement or only an upward adjustment of the $50,000 minimum.
At present, the New York State Athletic Commission has three commissioners. Tom Hoover is serving as a holdover in a term that expired on January 1, 2016. John Signorile is serving as a holdover in a term that expired on January 1, 2015. Edwin Torres is serving as a holdover in a term that expired on January 1, 2014. Two more commissioners will be added to the NYSAC by Governor Cuomo later this year subject to confirmation by the state senate.
The New York State Athletic Commission has to act on this matter. And if it’s determined that NYSAC doesn’t have the authority to lower the minimum insurance requirement, it’s incumbent upon the New York State legislature to do it.
Serious injuries are inevitable in boxing. Fighters need good medical benefits. But they also need to fight.
The New York State Athletic Commission is at a crossroads for many reasons. Things could get better or they could get worse. Much worse.
Thomas Hauser can be reached by email at thauser@rcn.com. His most recent book - A Hurting Sport: An Inside Look at Another Year in Boxing – was published by the University of Arkansas Press. In 2004, the Boxing Writers Association of America honored Hauser with the Nat Fleischer Award for career excellence in boxing journalism.