Funding Sources for AAC

First and foremost you probably need to know that when seeking funding AAC stops being called AAC and starts being called a SGD or Speech Generating Device.

Here are some funding sources for students with severe or multiple disabilities:

• medicaid/medicare and private health insurance (you usually need patient information form, SLP evaluation, prescription, letter of medical necessity)
  
• visit "An Overview of Health Based Funding of SGD" and
  
• "Medicare Funding of AAC" for more
  
• school system (mandated by IDEA)
• charitable organizations
  
• Muscular Dystrophy Association will fund AAC for student's who have a condition covered by MDA (such as muscular dystrophy or mitochondrial disease), an evaluation recommending a device from an SLP, a prescription from a doctor at an MDA clinic and have been denied coverage by health insurance or have no insurance), the amount changes annually - this year it is 2,000 dollars
• NOCK accepts applications from children who need AAC devices or wheelchairs and have exhausted all other means of funding
• The Disabled Children's Relief Fund accepts grant applications to provide goods and services need for children with disabilities who cannot otherwise afford them or attain them
• try local churches, synagogues, ELKs, Knights of Columbus, Shriners, Ladies Aid groups,
  
• depending on the state Easter Seals or ATA may have funding or a lending library
• local United Cerebral Palsy Chapters have access to the Bellows Fund for assistive technology which may be used for AAC

Here are some links for funding information:

• AAC Funding Help
  
• AAC Institute
  
• AAC RERC
  

Many of the top AAC companies have funding assistance and/or funding guides, such as Dynavox, just go to the website and look or call and ask

Finally parents or families may choose to take out a loan to purchase on their own (not recommended, if the student is in public school the school is legally required to purchase an AAC device if it is needed to make educational progress). Here is the RESNA listing of state AT loan programs.