New Bill Greenlights Exoskeletons for Vets

Timed to sync up with Veterans Day, a bi-partisan bill was scheduled to be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives designed to enhance the opportunity for clinically-eligible U.S. veterans to gain access to powered exoskeletons.

The bill, titled the Veterans Spinal Trauma Access to New Devices (STAND) Act, was introduced by Representative Jack Bergman (MI-01) and co-led by the Chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Mike Bost (IL-12), Ranking Member of the Health Subcommittee, Julia Brownley (CA-26), and Congresswoman Debbie Dingell (MI-6) in recognition of Veterans’ Day.

ReWalk Robotics Ltd., a provider of technologies that enable mobility and wellness in rehabilitation and daily life for individuals with neurological conditions, applauded the legislation, saying it will help ensure the U.S Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA) is delivering the technology in both a routine and timely manner.

“General Bergman’s leadership on this issue has been instrumental in promoting transparency and reliability at the VA for those veterans with spinal cord injuries and disorders (SCI/D) whose overall health can be profoundly improved by regaining the ability to walk with exoskeleton technology,” said Larry Jasinski, CEO of ReWalk Robotics. “We look forward to working with General Bergman, his colleagues in the House, the U.S. Senate and the VA leadership to standardize the process for evaluation, training and delivery of exoskeletons to eligible Veterans in need.”

The VA estimates that approximately 42,000 individuals with spinal cord injuries are U.S. veterans, of which the VA provides annual care to more than 27,000 individuals through the VA Spinal Cord Injuries and Disorders (SCI/D) network. The STAND Act, which has been endorsed by Paralyzed Veterans of America and Disabled American Veterans, seeks to ensure that:

• Annual exoskeleton evaluations are codified in law for those veterans who seek their care through the VA;
• The VA provides Congress updates on the progress in terms of numbers of evaluations, training and device approvals;
• Exoskeleton manufacturers and other external stakeholders are included when considering changes to the clinical practice guidelines published at VA governing the evaluation, training and procurement of exoskeleton devices;
• The appropriate usage of exoskeleton devices becomes a measurable element of the overall performance metrics for leadership within existing Veteran Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), or VA regions.

For more on ReWalk Robotics’ technologies, watch this video.