No one outside the NFL office knows whether or not there was truly an outbreak of Adderall abuse last season among players, including three Patriots. Under its steroid policy, the NFL is powerless to disclose the true nature of a violation. But the NFL continues to want that to change, according to senior vice president of law and labor policy Adolpho Birch. "One of the features of the (Major League Baseball) appeals system that we have proposed from the beginning has been to be able to disclose the substance that formed the basis of the violation," Birch said. "It is largely for that point – to make sure that everybody is clear on what that substance was so that there is no misinformation and ability to go behind and sort of minimize what the nature of an individual’s violation is. "We think that’s very important, not only for accuracy but also to help other players understand the real types of substances that potentially could lead to a positive result. And so we think from an educational standpoint, it’s important that everyone understands exactly what substances were involved." The NFLPA, which has said it would take the MLB drug policy today, including HGH testing, has balked at disclosures for privacy reasons. "The union has consistently rejected that," Birch said. "And so that would be another feature of the MLB policy that they said they’d take today that they apparently don’t want today." Source: Boston Globe
