Tag Archive for: NCAA Medical Hardship Waivers

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A Proactive Approach to Medical Hardship Waivers Can Preserve Eligibility

We frequently hear from student-athletes and families after a season has already ended asking whether a Medical Hardship Waiver can restore a lost season of eligibility.

While waivers are sometimes possible in those situations, the strongest cases are built during the season in which the injury or illness occurs—not afterward.

Being proactive can make the difference between a well-supported waiver request and one that faces significant uncertainty.

Why Timing Matters

If your athlete is dealing with an injury, illness, or mental health condition that limits participation, the most important factor in a Medical Hardship Waiver request is the timing and quality of the medical documentation.

Conference offices and eligibility committees must be able to clearly see that the condition was season-ending at the time it occurred—not something determined weeks or months later.

When documentation is delayed or incomplete, it becomes far more difficult to demonstrate that the athlete could not safely return to competition.

What a Strong Medical Hardship Case Includes

The best-positioned waiver requests typically contain:

  • Medical records beginning on the actual date of injury or diagnosis
  • Ongoing treatment documentation that shows the severity of the condition
  • A physician’s statement clearly indicating the athlete was not cleared to return to competition
  • A timeline that demonstrates how the injury or illness impacted the season

If a physician’s statement is missing—or comes too late—it may be unclear whether the situation truly met the definition of a season-ending condition, making approval less certain.

Documentation Can Also Protect Future Eligibility

Good documentation is not only important for the current season—it can matter later.

If an athlete experiences a second season impacted by injury or illness, prior medical records may help support an extension of the athlete’s eligibility “clock,” potentially allowing an additional year of competition.

That type of relief is only possible when there is strong, well-organized evidence across multiple seasons.

How Informed Athlete Can Help

If your athlete has suffered an injury or illness that has impacted their ability to compete, we can:

  • Explain the steps, rules, and timelines for a Medical Hardship Waiver
  • Help you identify what documentation is needed—and when to obtain it
  • Review records and provide guidance to strengthen the waiver request
  • Assist with personal statements and overall waiver strategy
  • Evaluate whether an additional eligibility extension may be available

To discuss your athlete’s specific situation and their opportunity for a Medical Hardship Waiver and/or an extension of their eligibility clock, schedule a confidential Waivers & Appeals consultation online, call our office at 913-766-1235 or send an email to rick@informedathlete.com

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Medical Hardship Waivers – The Importance of Documentation

A 2021 study by the NCAA revealed that 30% of student-athletes surveyed were extremely overwhelmed with 25% feeling mentally exhausted. Depression symptoms are considerably higher with college athletes than within the overall student population as a whole.

In the past few months, we’ve had a significant increase in calls asking whether a student-athlete might qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver due to mental health issues.

Medical Hardship Waivers ARE granted for mental health issues. However, as with all waivers, medical documentation is extremely important!

Complicating this is the fact that most student-athletes find it difficult to share their mental health struggles with anyone – including their coach, a medical professional and often times, even their family.

Our goal with this article is to encourage student-athletes who are struggling to reach out to their coach, team doctor, academic advisor and/or their parents to help them connect with a licensed counselor or therapist who can help provide tools and strategies to navigate through a difficult time.

We often suggest to athletes or parents who are requesting a waiver for mental health reasons that they need to think of the situation as if it were a physical injury. With a physical injury, an athlete needs medical documentation of a “season-ending” injury from the actual time of the initial diagnosis, such as for a torn ACL or the need for “Tommy John” surgery.

The documentation needed for a mental health waiver is no different. If an athlete didn’t seek out a therapist during the actual time that they were dealing with their mental health issues, or if the therapist didn’t document the dates and some notes of the discussions that the athlete had with their therapist, it will be very difficult for an athlete to have their mental health waiver approved.

Through the years, I’ve consulted with many parents of student-athletes who have qualified and received a medical hardship waiver and come through it to achieve even higher levels of success on the field and in the classroom than before.

If you have questions regarding your student-athlete’s specific situation and want to see if they might qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver or another type of waiver, schedule a confidential Waivers and Appeals Consult online, send an email rick@informedathlete.com or call our office at 913-766-1235.

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Does Your Student-Athlete Qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver?

It is possible for a student-athlete to receive a Medical Hardship Waiver to get their season of competition “over again” when:

  • A student-athlete has competed for their NCAA DI, NCAA DII, NAIA, or Juco college team during the season but then are injured or become ill to the point that they won’t be able to compete any more during the season,
  • An NCAA Division III student-athlete has competed or continued practicing with their team after the first game of the season but then are injured or become ill to the point that they won’t be able to compete any more during the season,

If your student-athlete has had a significant injury or illness during this Fall 2022 season and you’re wondering about the possibility of a Medical Hardship Waiver, it’s important to keep in mind that there are specific conditions and restrictions that apply for these types of waivers, and they vary between the NCAA, NAIA and JUCO rules.

NCAA guidelines and requirements for such a medical waiver can even differ between Division I, Division II, and Division lII programs.

In general terms, to qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver, an athlete can’t participate in more than 30% of the number of games or “dates of competition” in their regular season and can’t appear in a game after the midpoint of their season.

However, an athlete or family should not assume that the method of calculation for the “midpoint of the season” is the same for each college level for a team sport compared with an individual sport.

The most important factor when considering whether your athlete will qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver is the supporting medical documentation to verify that the injury or illness is “season ending” in its severity.

  • The medical documentation is especially important if an athlete is hoping to receive a Medical Hardship Waiver for mental health concerns.
  • That’s because most athletes don’t want to share with anybody – their coach, their athletic department or even a medical professional – that they have been dealing with mental health issues.

Do You Wonder if Your Student-Athlete Might Qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver?

To discuss your athlete’s specific situation in a confidential consultation to see if they might qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver (or for other types of Waivers such as for a family illness or a financial hardship), schedule a Waivers and Appeals Consult online, e-mail rick@informedathlete.com or call our office at 913-766-1235.

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NCAA Medical Hardship/Mental Health Waivers – What You Should Know!

We’ve been receiving a number of inquiries this summer asking whether an athlete can qualify for a Waiver for Mental Health issues for limited playing time or inability to finish their season due to mental health concerns.

Regardless of whether an athlete is seeking a hardship waiver due to mental health concerns, an illness or for a physical injury, the three main rules and requirements are basically the same across all NCAA (or junior college) divisions.

  • Participation in no more than 30 percent of contests or dates of competition in an athlete’s sport in NCAA Division I, NCAA DII or junior college. (33 percent in NCAA Division III).
  • An athlete can’t have appeared in a game after the half-way point of the season.
  • Athlete must have incurred an injury or illness before the half-way point of the season and have documentation from a physician (or mental health licensed professional) that the athlete is unable to participate any further in their season due to the injury or illness. Physician Documentation must have been recorded at the time of the illness or injury prior to the start of the second half of the season.

Most athletes who are dealing with mental health issues are reluctant to share with anyone including their coach, a medical professional or their family.

However, the medical documentation is especially important if an athlete is hoping to receive a Medical Hardship Waiver for mental health concerns.

To discuss your athlete’s specific situation in a confidential consultation to see if they might qualify for a Medical Hardship Waiver (or for other types of Waivers such as for a family illness or a financial hardship), schedule a Waivers and Appeals Consult online, email rick@informedathlete.com or call our office at 913-766-1235.

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NCAA Division I Medical Hardship Waivers

Due to unique circumstances with the pandemic, 2020-21 Fall/Winter and 2020 Spring Sport athletes at all levels will not be charged the use of a season of competition. In addition, many of these athletes have been granted an additional year or semesters on their eligibility “clock.”

For NCAA Division I, those benefits have not been extended to spring sports for this 2021 spring season and I don’t expect them to be. I believe the NCAA doesn’t want to overcrowd spring rosters even further by granting D1 spring sport athletes yet another “free” season of competition.

For that reason, let’s review the requirements for a Division I athlete to receive a Medical Hardship Waiver if a situation arises that your athlete becomes injured or ill to the point that they aren’t able to complete their season.

To qualify for a Division I Medical Hardship Waiver:

  • The athlete can’t have participated in more than 30% of the number of games or dates of competition in their sport.
  • The athlete also must not appear in a contest after the midpoint of the season.
  • The athlete must have contemporaneous documentation from a medical professional that their injury or illness prevents them from being able to continue participating in their season.

If you have questions about the Medical Hardship Waiver, schedule a confidential Waivers and Appeals consultation online, send an email to rick@informedathlete.com or call 913-766-1235.

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