"I don't want another child to ever go through this." Plan to cover stuttering therapy unanimously passes IL Senate

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — A bill that would expand insurance coverage for people with a stutter passed the Senate unanimously on a 52-0 vote.

The proposal would require insurance companies to cover speech therapy for those under the age of 19 who've developed a stutter. It would also stop any limits on coverage by the number of visits to a speech pathologist or be limited by the type of disease, injury or disorder that caused the stuttering.

State Sen. Willie Preston (D-Chicago) said this bill is personal to him.

"My son did not speak until he was six years old," Preston said. "I developed a stutter at the age of roughly 11-12 years old and had no access to speech therapy. I practiced in the mirror alone everyday to try and overcome this speech impediment and I don't want another child in Illinois to ever go through this."

With the policy passing the Senate, it now heads to the House floor, where lawmakers could talk about it in the coming weeks.