Ex-PSU doc awarded $5.25M in suit alleging James Franklin interference - ESPN

A jury Wednesday found in favor of a former Penn State athletics team doctor who claimed that he was removed as team physician in retaliation for complaining about head football coach James Franklin interfering with medical treatment and return-to-play decisions.

A Dauphin County jury in Harrisburg awarded orthopedic surgeon Dr. Scott Lynch $5.25 million in punitive and compensatory damages. Testimony during the seven-day trial included former Penn State players, doctors, athletic trainers, university system officials and others discussing examples of injuries and medical decisions.

Lynch said in a phone call with ESPN that he hopes the verdict will prompt an investigation by the NCAA, which has had a policy guaranteeing independence of sports medicine staff since 2016. «There's not yet been one school punished for violating medical autonomy issues,» he said.

«This is bigger than just Penn State,» Lynch said. «It's really a national crisis and things have to change.» He said he hoped the size of the money awarded in his case would prompt schools to pay more attention to this issue.

«We are extremely disappointed to learn of the jury's decision, as we continue to believe that the claims in the complaint have no merit. Penn State Health will soon determine whether it will appeal the decision,» Penn State Health said in a statement.

«Penn State Health and the University remain dedicated to the health and well-being of our student-athletes.»

Lynch filed suit in August 2019, about six months after being removed as football team orthopedic physician and director of athletic medicine at Penn State, a position he had held since 2014.

Lynch was suing Penn State Health's Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and Dr. Kevin Black, the