Florida Rugby Union Coronavirus and COVID-19 Update:

In line with USA Rugby’s published guidelines, the Florida Rugby Union & Florida Youth Rugby Union have created this policy to help guide teams through the complicated process of returning to play rugby in Florida. 

Currently Approved and/or waiting to be Approved

Additional information on returning to league play can be found here.

Key Items 

• Your regional health mandate supersedes any policy outlined by the FRU, USA Rugby, or World Rugby: https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html
• If your local county allows social activity such as sports and gatherings then you can create a plan for how you can return to play via the steps bellow. 
• USA Rugby has set June 1st as the date in which teams can begin working through the guidelines for a return to play and thus have liability insurance coverage. It should be important to note is that the insurance policies have an exclusion for communicable diseases and pandemic/epidemics, so while a broken leg would be covered, COVID itself is not.
• The extent of which teams can practice/train is very limited please read the steps carefully and the USA Rugby document very carefully.
• Youth/High School Teams, if you are a youth and/or high school team looking to return to play please carefully read the CDC and Florida Health Guidelines for this.

Return to Play Steps

Florida Rugby Template Documents

• Return to Play Authorization Letter – To be completed by the club before they begin practices, this document must be completed, club name inserted in the required sections, and signed by both the lead coach and the club administrator. The signed and the completed form should be emailed to Florida Rugby General Manager Evan Haigh (evan.haigh at floridarugby.org) 
• Return to Play Participant Log – To be completed by the club lead for each practice, this should be stored by the club representative — For clubs who want to use it o an iPad in excel form here is the excel version.

If you are allowed to play locally, then see below on how to proceed. Your regional health mandate supersedes any policy outlined by the FRU, USA Rugby, or World Rugby:

• https://www.cdc.gov/publichealthgateway/healthdirectories/healthdepartments.html

If you are a college club, your school’s policy should also be consulted for guidance and it also takes precedence over any FRU policy.

Additional state-specific info – your local (above link) may be more restrictive- https://floridahealthcovid19.gov/

USA Rugby has a detailed return to play guideline, we have abbreviated this below for the FRU.

https://assets.usarugby.org/docs/medical/USAR-R2P.pdf?v=1590538775401

Step 1: Reference your local health mandate using this link to determine what local guidelines apply. If social activity such as sports and gatherings as outlined below are allowed, proceed to Step 2. If sports and gatherings are not allowed yet, you cannot play rugby yet.

Step 2: Your coach and at least one club administrator need to complete the World Rugby Return to Play online modules. Then, determine the suggested activity level allowed by your city/county and cross-reference each element with local health protocol. Stages listed below outline which activity level is appropriate based upon city/county guidelines. If you are past stage 2 in the chart proceed to Step 3. A larger reference file can be found on page 6 of this link. Use this link for Symptom Checks to be performed at training. At this time, the state of Florida is not at Stage 4.

Step 3:

1. Develop rugby activity plans for training and competition based on the determined stage.
2. Present activity plans with local health officials for assurance of safety and public welfare. Upon local approval, contact the FRU (email Evan Haigh) to let us know you have resumed and what stage of activities. If your local authority defers you to get governing body approval first, please contact the FRU (email Evan Haigh) with your proposal first.

This Stage 3 guide has been reviewed by local medical and scientific professionals and is intended to mitigate the risk of participants. Each county/city across the state may have different guidelines, and thus teams must follow their local guidelines even if other teams have moved forward to a different stage.

Please note:
If a member of your club who has participated in club activities or practices has a confirmed positive result for COVID-19, the member should follow the CDC guidelines for quarantine/self-isolation. The club must cease practices for 14 days to ensure no other members were exposed during club activities. Report this to the FRU if your club must cease practices.

USA Rugby Update Page which also includes document linked above:

• https://www.usa.rugby/2020/03/coronavirus-covid-19-status-and-updates-usa-rugby/

If you have specific questions the above information does not answer, please email inquiries to president AT floridarugby.org

Future Guide for when state guidelines reduce restrictions: