Rep. Brandon J. Markosek (D-Allegheny) didn’t speak until he was 3 years old, and even when he did, he stuttered.
Now, 30 years later, he Legislation to ensure access to speech therapyThis week, he brought in a former NBA star from Philadelphia to help out.
The bill, approved by the House Insurance Committee on Tuesday, would provide insurance coverage for speech therapy for people who stutter or have neurological injuries. While some private health insurers cover speech therapy, many do not.
“When we treat stuttering early, it helps kids feel more confident,” Markosek said. “Some of the things I learned in speech therapy are still helpful to me and I think about them every day.” Markosek added that getting speech therapy early is crucial for kids.
Markosec’s insurance covered speech therapy as a child, but former Charlotte Bobcats player Michael Kidd-Gilchrist didn’t see a speech therapist until he was 18. A year later, he was the No. 2 overall pick in the NBA draft.
Kidd-Gilchrist is no longer a professional basketball player, but instead travels around the country to meet with kids who stutter.
He met with Markosek in his office Monday morning to discuss the speech-therapy bill, surrounded by a camera crew of retired players ready to film social media content, and the two opted for a private meeting rather than a large news conference, given Markosek’s condition.
“Growing up, I was always bullied and teased,” Kidd-Gilchrist said, “and I just hid in plain sight.”
Kidd-Gilchrist founded Change and Impact, a California-based nonprofit dedicated to expanding medical access and services for people who stutter.
Five to ten percent of American children suffer from stuttering for anywhere from a few weeks to a few years. Approximately three million Americans suffer from stuttering. Most children outgrow their communication disorder as they grow, but 25% are notAccording to the National Institute on Deafness and Communication Disorders.
Markoce recounted a similar childhood experience, sitting in the corner of a classroom and never raising his hand when his name was called. At a recent visit to a Jersey Mike’s, the waiter chuckled as he took his order at the counter. As a politician, speaking is now a key part of his job description.
“We need people to talk about this issue all the time,” Markoce said of introducing the bill, “and it’s hard for people who stutter to talk.”
Markoce is one of the few known state-level public officials in the country who stutters, and President Joe Biden, who has stuttered since childhood, has brought widespread attention to stuttering at the national level.
Markosek was inspired by a recent law in Kentucky that requires speech therapy for stuttering to be covered by private health insurance, Medicaid and the state’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. Kidd-Gilchrist had previously advocated for Kentucky to pass a speech therapy bill.
The Pennsylvania bill passed unanimously out of the House Insurance Committee on Tuesday, with an amendment that removed Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program from the bill.
Markosek and Kidd-Gilchrist were confident the bill would soon be introduced in the House.
“This is about our lives,” Kidd-Gilchrist said.