Senators Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Andy Kim (D-N.J.) introduced the Kidd’s Stuttering Act on Wednesday, July 30th, 2026, a bipartisan bill designed to improve the identification and treatment of children who stutter. The legislation is supported by former NBA player Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, who has personal experience with stuttering.

The bill proposes that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) add stuttering and fluency screening measures to its core pediatric health quality measures by 2028. It also requires children ages two through six to be screened for childhood-onset fluency disorders, including stuttering, during Medicaid well-child visits starting in 2029.

Additionally, the legislation mandates that Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) cover speech therapy services for stuttering at least at the same level as treatments for other speech fluency disorders by 2029. According to CMS, more than 35.5 million children were enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP as of March 2026.

Roughly 5 percent of children experience a period of stuttering lasting six months or more, and about 1 percent have a long-term stuttering problem, according to The Stuttering Foundation. Kidd-Gilchrist, an eight-year NBA veteran who played for the Charlotte Hornets and Dallas Mavericks, is among those affected.

“No child should fall behind because a treatable speech disorder goes undiagnosed,” Banks said in a statement. “This bipartisan bill will help more children find their voices and reach their full potential.”

Earlier this year, Tennessee lawmakers passed legislation allowing individuals who stutter to note their condition in the state’s vehicle registration database to inform law enforcement during traffic stops.

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