BATON ROUGE (AP) — Gov. John Bel Edwards has agreed to expand a law championed by beloved former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason that gives terminally-ill patients access to experimental treatments.
The governor has signed into law a bill broadening Louisiana's Right to Try Act to include robotic devices that help people unable to talk or write. Gleason, who has ALS and uses similar technology to speak, testified on behalf of the expansion.
The act, originally passed in 2014, allows terminally-ill patients with permission from their doctors to use experimental drugs and treatment methods that aren't approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Insurers don't have to cover the costs.
Edwards' office announced Tuesday he had signed the expansion proposal by Rep. Julie Stokes, a Kenner Republican.
