Former NBA star teams up with GOP lawmaker to help young children suffering from stuttering disorder

Former NBA star Michael Kidd-Gilchrist is teaming up with Reps. Addison McDowell, R-N.C., and Shomari Figures, D-Ala., to help pass legislation at the federal level that would help increase access to early detection services for children who may suffer from a stuttering disorder.

Kidd-Gilchrist, who spent the majority of his professional basketball career with the Charlotte Bobcats and Charlotte Hornets before a short stint with the Dallas Mavericks, has built a reputation as an advocate for childhood stuttering disorders. The Kidd's Stuttering Act will make early stuttering detection available to kids on Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), by making them mandatory for children between the ages of two and six when they go on well visits. The bioll would also make coverage of speech therapy services mandatory under Medicaid and CHIP, among other provisions aiming at expanding access to care for stuttering.  

"This bill makes early stuttering detection available to kids on Medicaid and CHIP, giving us a real chance to identify these issues early on for thousands of children across the country. A four-year-old has a 75% better chance of recovery when we identify it early," McDowell said. "The work Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has done at the state and national level has already changed lives, and I’m looking forward to helping carry that progress forward legislatively in Congress."

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After retiring from the NBA, Kidd-Gilchrist founded the nonprofit Change & Impact Inc. to help advocate for improving healthcare services, and access to such services, for those who stutter. He has built a reputation as a national advocate for folks who deal with stuttering, including through his work ushering in state-level legislation on stuttering in places like Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Nevada. Now, Kidd-Gilchrist is hoping to get legislation passed at the federal level. 

"I am grateful for the chance to support this important work as we push to make early screenings and therapy available to every child that stutters," Kidd-Gilchrist said. "Families should not have to fight for basic care that helps to make a difference in their child’s future. I know the difference it can make in a child’s life, and it's much needed."

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According to The Stuttering Foundation, a group founded in the 1940s to advocate for those with stuttering issues, it says that about 5% of all children go through a period of stuttering that lasts six months, or more. Three-quarters of those who begin to show signs of stuttering will recover by late-childhood, leaving roughly 1% of the population, or approximately 3 million people, with a consistent long-term problem, the foundation also indicates. 

Meanwhile, researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimate that 70 million adults worldwide are impacted by a stuttering disorder.

Kidd-Gilchrist's bill being introduced with the help of McDowell and Figures will require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to add stuttering and fluency screening measures to the "Child Core Set" of health care quality measures. It will also require CMS to require screening for stuttering in Medicaid well-child visits for kids between two and six years-of-age, and includes a coverage mandate that Medicaid and CHIP provide coverage for speech therapy services associated with stuttering issues. 

The coverage mandate is, at least in part, aimed at reducing any disparate treatment in terms of coverage for stuttering versus other speech therapy services.

"As a father and an advocate for families, I am proud to work with Congressman Addison McDowell and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist to introduce legislation to better support children and families," said Congressman Figures. "We know that early intervention can make all the difference in a child's speech development, their confidence, and their overall well-being. This legislation is an important step in providing families with the support and medical coverage they need and deserve."