SEDL / STP / STP1050-EB / STP24038S

The Ice Hockey Face Guard: Health Care Costs and Ethics

Vinger, PF
Harvard Medical School, Lexington, MA

Bentkover, JD
Lecturer in economics, Harvard School of Public Health, Cambridge, MA

Sullivan, R
Sportswriter, Rockefeller Center, New York, NY

Kalin, JG
Professor of ethics, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY

Pages: 5    Published: Jan 1989

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Abstract

The hockey face guard has been mandated for many levels of organized hockey playing in the United States and Canada. The widespread use of the hockey face guard has resulted in a saving in health care costs of $10 million annually in the United States alone. In this paper, the use of hockey facial protective equipment from the standpoint of ethical considerations will be discussed in terms of each level of hockey, from Youth sports through College and professional leagues.