{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.banks.senate.gov/news/press-releases/exclusive-the-hill-banks-kim-introduce-stuttering-legislation-with-backing-of-former-nba-player/", "EXCLUSIVE: The Hill: Banks, Kim Introduce Stuttering Legislation with Backing of Former NBA Player", "2026-07-30", "2026", "2026-07", "Republican", "Senate", "IN", "Jim Banks", "B001299", "www.banks.senate.gov", "banks", "https://www.banks.senate.gov/news/press-releases/", "scraper", "Click here to read the full story from The Hill or read below.\n\nEXCLUSIVE: Sens. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Andy Kim (D-N.J.) on Wednesday introduced legislation that would aim to improve identification and treatment for children who stutter, with an assist from former NBA player Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.\n\nThe legislation, titled the Kidd\u2019s Stuttering Act, proposes directing the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to add stuttering and fluency screening measures to its core set of pediatric health quality measures by 2028.\n\nIt also proposes requiring children ages 2 through 6 to undergo screening for childhood-onset fluency disorders, including stuttering, during Medicaid well-child visits starting in 2029.\n\nThe legislation would additionally require Medicaid and the Children\u2019s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to cover speech therapy services at the same level, at minimum, as treatment for other speech fluency disorders by 2029. As of March, more than 35.5 million children were enrolled in either Medicaid or CHIP, according to CMS.\n\n\u201cNo child should fall behind because a treatable speech disorder goes undiagnosed,\u201d Banks said in a statement. \u201cThis bipartisan bill will help more children find their voices and reach their full potential.\u201d\n\nRoughly 5 percent of children go through a period of stuttering lasting at least six months, while 1 percent have \u201ca long-term problem,\u201d according to the Stuttering Foundation.\n\nKidd-Gilchrist, an eight-year NBA veteran who played for the Charlotte Hornets and Dallas Mavericks, is among the 1 percent. The 32-year-old told The Hill he has dealt with a stutter for his \u201cwhole life,\u201d which convinced him to advocate for increased coverage.\n\n\u201cI was always picked on and such like that \u2026 as a player, and as far as how I talk,\u201d Kidd-Gilchrist said over the phone. \u201cAnd I think \u2026 in 2021\u2026 it was a point where \u2026 I had even seen an opportunity to just advocate for myself, for one.\u201d\n\nHe later added, \u201cI didn\u2019t know it would \u2026 even lead to a bill.\u201d\n\nKidd-Gilchrist\u2019s efforts have led four states \u2013\u2013 Illinois, Kentucky, Nevada and Pennsylvania \u2013\u2013 to enact laws that cover speech therapy. Lawmakers in Tennessee also enacted legislation earlier this year to allow those who stutter to note their condition in the state\u2019s vehicle registration database so law enforcement officers are aware they may have trouble communicating during traffic stops.\n\nKentucky\u2019s new law, which requires insurers operating in the state to cover speech therapy services for stuttering, is particularly personal for Kidd-Gilchrist \u2014 who spent his lone collegiate season at the University of Kentucky.\n\nWhile there, Kidd-Gilchrist teamed up with future NBA All-Star Anthony Davis to lead the Wildcats to a 38-2 season and the program\u2019s eighth national title. Kidd-Gilchrist was then the No. 2 overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Hornets, previously known as the Charlotte Bobcats, and averaged 8.4 points across eight seasons in the association.\n\nBut after the New York Knicks signed Kidd-Gilchrist ahead of what would have been his ninth year in the NBA, the team waived him just three weeks later. That spurred him into action on the policy side.\n\n\u201cIt was a dark space at times, it was a lonely space at times,\u201d Kidd-Gilchrist said of growing up with a stutter. \u201cAnd \u2026 even in my position as an athlete, I was the only one who had a stutter.\u201d\n\n\u201cI might have a championship in college, but \u2026 I was in the dark for so long because socially it\u2019s hard. \u2026 It\u2019s hard to be accepted.\u201d\n\nKim, who represents Kidd-Gilchrist\u2019s home state of New Jersey, praised his constituent\u2019s efforts on Wednesday. The Garden State Democrat said the former NBA player\u2019s advocacy on behalf of children who stutter has \u201cmoved\u201d him.\n\n\u201cOur kids are looking to us to be their voice in Congress \u2014 let\u2019s show up for them with this bill and get them the care they need for lifelong success,\u201d Kim added in a statement.\n\nOver in the House, Reps. Shomari Figures (D-Ala.) and Addison McDowell (R-N.C.) introduced their version of the Kidd\u2019s Stuttering Act in December, with nine Democrats and nine Republicans co-sponsoring the legislation since.\n\nThe lower chamber referred the bill to the Energy and Commerce Committee at the time, but lawmakers on the panel have not taken further action. Kidd-Gilchrist, though, was \u201chopeful\u201d the legislation will eventually become law.\n\n\u201cI got five bills passed \u2026 at the state level \u2026 in probably two years,\u201d he noted. \u201cI know that this will pass.\u201d\n\n###", 1, "2026-07-31T07:49:23Z", "2026-07-31T07:50:48Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.banks.senate.gov/news/press-releases/exclusive-the-hill-banks-kim-introduce-stuttering-legislation-with-backing-of-former-nba-player/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.5642081163823605, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}