SECTION 1. Short Title.
This Act may be cited as the “Steve Gleason Act of 2015”.
Steve Gleason Act of 2015
An Act
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide Medicare beneficiary access to eye tracking accessories for speech generating devices and to remove the rental cap for durable medical equipment under the Medicare Program with respect to speech generating devices.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SEC. 2. Providing Medicare Beneficiary Access to Eye Tracking Accessories for Speech Generating Devices.
In General.— Section 1861(n) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(n)) is amended by inserting “ and eye tracking and gaze interaction accessories for speech generating devices furnished to individuals with a demonstrated medical need for such accessories” after “ appropriate organizations)”.
Effective Date.— The amendment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to devices furnished on or after January 1, 2016.
SEC. 3. Removing the Rental Cap for Durable Medical Equipment under Medicare with Respect to Speech Generating Devices.
Section 1834(a)(2)(A) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(a)(2)(A)) is amended—
in clause (ii), by striking “ or” at the end;
in clause (iii), by adding “ or” at the end; and
by inserting after clause (iii) the following new clause:
“(iv) in the case of devices furnished on or after October 1, 2015, and before October 1, 2018, which serves as a speech generating device or which is an accessory that is needed for the individual to effectively utilize such a device,”