U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) applauded the signing of the Steve Gleason Act into law this summer, which ensures access to cutting-edge speech generation devices for those who need such equipment to communicate with their loved ones and caregivers.
The bill was named after Spokane, Washington, native and former NFL football player Steve Gleason, who announced his diagnosis of Lou Gehrig’s disease in January 2011. Gleason, most known on the field for his blocked punt in a 2006 New Orleans Saints game, has since become an outspoken advocate for advancing public awareness about the disease, also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS.
The disease attacks motor neurons, cells that control the muscles.
“Life-changing innovations cannot help people when they’re collecting dust on a shelf or getting tangled in red tape,” McMorris Rodgers said. “Because of Gail Gleason and Steve Gleason, thousands of Americans living with degenerative diseases can have the peace-of-mind today that their voices will continue to be heard. I’m proud to have steered this bill through Congress from start to finish, with the help of Majority Whip (Steve) Scalise (R-LA), Rep. Erik Paulsen (R-MN), and Sen. David Vitter (R-LA).”
Gail Gleason and members of the ALS Foundation approached McMorris Rodgers in 2014 about changes to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regulations that limited access to speech generation devices (SGDs).
The changes had a direct impact on those who are on Medicare and use such devices, which typically supplement or replace speech or writing for those with severe speech impairments, allowing them the ability to communicate despite limited means of verbal interaction. Millions of Americans with degenerative or crippling medical conditions rely on such devices for communication purposes.
As a result of the CMS regulatory changes to SGDs, local Medicare contracts stopped covering eye tracking accessories, the devices were placed in the capped rental category and Medicare denied patients the ability to “unlock” their device with their own post-tax money.
More than 200 members of the House and Senate on both sides of the aisle sent a letter to CMS seeking an investigation of the decision. After CMS addressed only one area of concern from the letter, McMorris Rodgers and Vitter introduced the Steve Gleason Act as a legislative solution.
The legislation was signed into law by President Obama on July 30.