NATA Beat: Fall 2025 Advocacy Updates
Every day, NATA and the NATA Government Affairs Department are working on behalf of the athletic training profession. With staff members experienced in all aspects of the legislative process, the NATA Government Affairs Department is the sole department focused on advocacy for the profession. NATA’s goal is to ensure that all ATs can work to the fullest extent of their education and skill set. These bipartisan efforts consist of five key areas: state legislation, federal legislation, regulatory, reimbursement and NATAPAC.
49ers' Marcus Lattimore's Concussion Awareness Initiative
San Francisco 49ers rookie Marcus Lattimore has been making headlines lately, and still has yet to play one minute in his NFL career. As NFL commentators and critics debate whether he’ll be removed from the team’s non-football injury list to the active roster for the Rams game on Oct. 13, Lattimore’s nonprofit foundation is generating media buzz over a new concussion awareness initative benefitting South Carolina's young football athletes.
Manual Therapy Certificate Work Group Opportunities
The Professional Development Committee (PDC) is working on the development of a Manual Therapy Certificate of Completion. The certificate will be launched during 2015. Those wishing to earn the certificate will complete several online modules and will complete the certificate by attending in-person sessions. Within the certificate there will be three tracks - upper extremity, lower extremity and spine. Several ATs who are leaders in the manual therapy field are already engaged with Jay Scifers, DScPT, LAT, ATC, and Chad Krawiec, MS, ATC, of the PDC in the development of the certificate.
In Case You Missed It: NATA Buzz, from Convention News to Scholarship Opportunities
The saying goes "spring forward, fall back," but from we sit at the NATA office, the beginning of October has quickly turned into one of our busiest times of year.
Scott Sailor Wins NATA Presidential Election
The results of our presidential election are finalized, and Scott Sailor, EdD, ATC, has been voted by the membership to be our next president. He will take office in June 2015. Our sincere thanks to Russ Richardson, EdD, ATC, for his willingness to serve the association and to all the members who engaged in the voting process.
And The (Individual) NPI Contest Winners Are...
NATA’s NPI contest ‘Are You Being Counted’ is finished, and we are excited to report an additional 1,727 athletic trainers now have NPIs. Congratulations to District Four for winning the “Largest percentage of members with NPIs” category and District Three for taking the “Highest percentage increase in members with NPIs” title. We detailed the full district breakdown in a previous blog post.
September Is Children’s Cardiomyopathy Awareness Month
NATA Partners with the Children’s Cardiomyopathy Foundation to Shine Spotlight on Devastating Children’s Heart Disease Through Awareness Month
NATA is partnering with the Children’s Cardiomyopathy Foundation (CCF) for Children’s Cardiomyopathy Awareness Month this September. The awareness month will educate the public about pediatric cardiomyopathy, a chronic and potentially life-threatening heart disease that affects how the heart muscle pumps blood through the body.
Have You Voted Yet? Get Your Badge!
We're almost three weeks into the NATA presidential election, and our latest numbers show that only 12 percent of our membership has voted so far. If you're one of those 12 percent, we encourage you to display our "I voted" badge on social media to encourage your fellow athletic trainers to follow suit. Just right click the badge below and save it to your own computer so you can post it or share it anywhere you see fit.
Voting Protocol:
NPI Contest: Districts Three and Four Emerge Victorious
Safe Sports School Success Story
Hawaii Baptist Academy’s Sam Lee, ATC, recently sent us an email sharing his excitement about earning a Safe Sports School Award.
In that email, Sam wrote: “Thanks for allowing us, helping us, enabling and empowering us to do something good for our community; not so much for the individual glory, but that people might see what a wonderful resource may be available to them with athletic trainers in their communities.”