Legislation would make the Steve Gleason Act of 2015, which increased access to speech generating devices for people with degenerative diseases, permanent.
On May 16, 2017, Representatives John Larson (D-CT), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), and Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the Steve Gleason Enduring Voices Act, which builds upon the successes of the Steve Gleason Act of 2015. The Steve Gleason Enduring Voices Act permanently fixes the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) policy that limited access to speech generation devices for people with degenerative diseases.
The Center for Medicare Advocacy was one of the organizations that worked closely with Team Gleason on the 2015 law. The Center applauds the Steve Gleason Enduring Voices Act, which will provide peace of mind for extremely vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries and ensure they will never again lose their only means of communication if they need to leave home to live in a nursing facility, hospice or hospital.
Read the full press release on Rep. Larson’s site at: https://larson.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/larson-mcmorris-rodgers-cassidy-and-klobuchar-introduce-steve-gleason