WALLENPAUPACK, PA — The board of the Wallenpaupack Area School District has voted to hire a physician to deal with situations where a student might suffer a concussion.

The vote on April 11 was to hire Dr. Nicolas Belasco for the position for the 2016-17 school year. Belasco works at Bon Secours Hospital, where he is the director of concussion management.

Although Belasco will be tasked with overseeing the care of a student who may suffer a concussion, parents will still have the option of getting treatment for their child from an outside doctor.

Concussions have become an increasing concern, especially in the area of high school and professional sports. The U.S. Court of Appeals recently upheld a multi-million dollar settlement between the National Football League (NFL) and former players, because the NFL hid information about repeated head bumps and concussions and what they could lead to later in life.

The settlement allows some former players who contracted ALS because of repeated concussions to collect up to $5 million from the NFL, while players with Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases could receive up to $3.5 million.