National Aphasia Association
Founded 1987. The longest-running U.S. nonprofit dedicated to aphasia awareness, education, and support. Maintains a searchable group directory and runs Aphasia Awareness Month every June.
aphasia.orgVetted & Real
Where to actually get help.
A curated directory of trustworthy organizations, federal programs, AT lending libraries, and research portals serving communities living with voice impairment. We only list what we know is real. If a link is here, we vetted it. If a community we serve isn't represented yet, that's our fault to fix — tell us.
How we vet. Every organization listed below is real, established, and either lived-experience-led, federally funded, or a long-trusted disability-rights resource. We deliberately exclude organizations that the constituent communities have publicly disavowed (for example, the autistic community broadly rejects organizations that frame autism as a tragedy or use puzzle-piece imagery — we honor that consensus and list autistic-led groups instead).
Aphasia
For people with aphasia and the families around them.
Aphasia is the loss of language without the loss of intelligence. These are the orgs that have been doing the work for decades.
Aphasia Recovery Connection
Patient-and-caregiver-led nonprofit running online support groups, recovery boot camps, and one of the largest peer-to-peer aphasia networks online.
aphasiarecoveryconnection.orgAphasia Centers (LPAA model)
The Life Participation Approach to Aphasia is a clinical model emphasizing community re-engagement over deficit fixing. Most major U.S. universities with SLP programs run an aphasia center using it.
aphasia.org/aphasia-centers
AAC
For AAC users and the people choosing systems with them.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication includes everything from picture boards to speech-generating devices to AAC apps on tablets. The orgs below are the ones AAC users themselves point to.
CommunicationFIRST
The first and only U.S. nonprofit run by and for people who use AAC. Federal policy advocacy, legal rights resources, and the canonical disability-justice voice in AAC.
communicationfirst.orgUSSAAC
The U.S. Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication. Membership org connecting AAC users, families, SLPs, researchers, and educators. Annual conference + journal.
ussaac.orgAAC funding (Medicare / Medicaid / private)
Most U.S. private insurers, Medicare, and Medicaid cover dedicated speech-generating devices when an SLP documents medical necessity. Your SLP files the SGD evaluation and prior auth — a process the AAC manufacturers' funding teams help with directly.
See our SLP finder →
Stroke
For stroke survivors and care partners.
Stroke is the leading cause of acquired aphasia. Recovery isn't linear — and the orgs doing this best know that.
American Stroke Association
Division of the American Heart Association. Stroke Connection support network, post-stroke recovery resources, and Together to End Stroke campaign materials.
stroke.orgStroke Onward
Founded by a stroke-survivor couple. Focused on identity, relationships, and emotional recovery after stroke — the parts hospital discharge plans don't cover.
strokeonward.orgNINDS — Stroke Information
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke maintains the canonical, plain-language federal stroke-information page including post-stroke aphasia.
ninds.nih.gov/disorders/stroke
ALS
For people living with ALS — and the case for early AAC.
ALS often takes voice before it takes mobility. Early voice banking and early AAC adoption (before they're "needed") radically change quality of life.
The ALS Association
National advocacy and chapter network. Equipment loan programs, certified ALS clinics, and the largest U.S. ALS support infrastructure.
als.orgTeam Gleason
Founded by Steve Gleason. Provides assistive tech (eye-gaze AAC, communication devices, smart-home tech) directly to people with ALS and pushes federal policy on Medicare AAC coverage. Drove the 2018 Steve Gleason Act.
teamgleason.orgModelTalker / VocaliD
Voice banking lets people record their voice early and use a synthesized version of it through AAC after ALS takes their speech. ModelTalker (University of Delaware) is free and research-based.
modeltalker.org
Autism
For autistic individuals — including those who don't speak or speak differently than expected.
We list autistic-led organizations only. The autistic community has explicitly rejected organizations that frame autism as tragedy or use puzzle-piece imagery; we honor that.
Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN)
"Nothing about us, without us." Run by and for autistic adults. Federal policy advocacy, plain-language toolkits, and the standard reference for community-aligned autism rights.
autisticadvocacy.orgAutistic Women & Nonbinary Network (AWN)
Lived-experience-led nonprofit centering autistic women, nonbinary people, and trans autistic individuals. Resources, anthology, and a strong intersectional voice.
awnnetwork.orgCommunicationFIRST — Nonspeaking autism resources
For nonspeaking autistic individuals using AAC, CommunicationFIRST maintains the most rights-grounded resource set in the U.S., including their position on the right to communicate.
communicationfirst.org
Brain injury
For brain injury survivors and families.
Traumatic brain injury and acquired brain injury can affect speech in dozens of ways. Recovery is long. These are the orgs that stay with you for it.
Brain Injury Association of America
The country's oldest and largest brain injury advocacy organization. State chapter network, federal policy work, and the National Brain Injury Information Center helpline.
biausa.orgBrainLine (WETA / Defense)
Funded by the U.S. Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center. Plain-language information, video stories, and resources for both civilian and military TBI.
brainline.orgWounded Warrior Project — TBI
Direct services for post-9/11 veterans living with TBI, including communication-focused programs and benefits navigation.
woundedwarriorproject.org
Cerebral palsy
For people with cerebral palsy across the lifespan.
CP is non-progressive but lifelong. Communication needs evolve from childhood AAC into adult workplace and healthcare access — these orgs do both ends.
United Cerebral Palsy
Affiliate network running direct services for people with CP and a wide range of other disabilities. Independent-living, employment, and family-support programs in most states.
ucp.orgCP Now
Lived-experience-led nonprofit publishing the CP Daily Living Guide and producing some of the strongest adult-CP self-advocacy content in the U.S.
cpnowfoundation.orgCerebral Palsy Research Network
Multi-center clinical research network of major U.S. children's hospitals. Patient-facing CPRN MyCP portal lets people with CP and families track outcomes and join studies.
cprn.org
Apraxia & dysarthria
For families navigating apraxia of speech and dysarthria.
Apraxia and dysarthria are motor-speech disorders that can affect children and adults. The right SLP credentials matter a lot here.
Apraxia Kids
The leading U.S. nonprofit for childhood apraxia of speech. Maintains a national directory of SLPs trained in CAS, runs the only national CAS conference, and publishes the parent-facing CAS guide.
apraxia-kids.orgNational Aphasia Association — Acquired Apraxia
Acquired apraxia of speech often co-occurs with aphasia after stroke. NAA's resource library covers the overlap and treatment options for adults.
aphasia.orgASHA practice portals — motor speech
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's clinical practice portals on dysarthria and apraxia of speech are the canonical clinical reference U.S. SLPs use. Public-readable.
asha.org/practice-portal
Dementia
For families living through late-stage dementia.
Communication doesn't end when speech does. These orgs hold that.
Alzheimer's Association
24/7 helpline, care navigation, and the most-used dementia caregiver support network in the U.S. The Communication tip sheets are well-made.
alz.orgThe Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration
FTD often presents as language loss (primary progressive aphasia variants) before broader cognitive change. AFTD's PPA resources are the best in the field.
theaftd.orgTeepa Snow / Positive Approach to Care
Teepa Snow's Positive Approach to Care training is the most-used framework for communicating with people in mid-to-late-stage dementia. Many free resources; paid professional training.
teepasnow.com
Legal & rights
When the system says no.
Free legal help and federal complaint channels for ADA, Section 504, and Section 1557 violations.
NDRN — Protection & Advocacy
Every U.S. state and territory has a federally-funded P&A agency providing free legal help on disability rights. NDRN's directory is the front door.
ndrn.org/member-agenciesDOJ Civil Rights Division
Files ADA Title II and Title III complaints. Free. No lawyer required. Walks you through it online.
civilrights.justice.govHHS Office for Civil Rights
For ADA + Section 504 + Section 1557 complaints against hospitals, clinics, and any federally-funded healthcare entity.
hhs.gov/ocr/complaintsFor our deeper guide to rights + how to request accommodations, see ADA Rights →
Funding AAC & SGDs
How to actually pay for a speech-generating device.
Speech-generating devices and AAC apps are covered as durable medical equipment by Medicare, Medicaid, and most private insurers when an SLP documents medical necessity.
Medicare SGD coverage
Medicare Part B covers SGDs as durable medical equipment. Driven by the Steve Gleason Act (2018) which made coverage permanent and removed the rental-only restriction. Your SLP files the SGD evaluation.
cms.gov — SGD LCDMedicaid SGD coverage
All state Medicaid programs cover SGDs as DME under the federal benefit. Coverage details vary by state. Children under 21 are also covered under EPSDT.
medicaid.govPrivate insurance prior auth
Most private plans cover SGDs as DME with prior authorization. AAC manufacturer funding teams (Tobii Dynavox, PRC-Saltillo, Lingraphica) handle most of the prior-auth paperwork on your behalf — call them before you call your insurer.
Start with an SLP →
AT lending
Try before you buy — your state's AT Act program.
Every U.S. state and territory runs a federally-funded Assistive Technology Act program with a device-loan library. You can borrow AAC devices, communication apps, switches, and mounting hardware — usually free, usually for 4-6 weeks.
AT3 Center — find your state AT program
The AT Act technical-assistance center maintains the national directory of state AT programs. Click your state, find your local AT lending library.
at3center.net/state-at-programsCT Tech Act Project
Connecticut's federally-funded AT program. Device demonstration, short-term loans, and reuse program operating out of the Bureau of Rehabilitation Services.
cttechact.comFamily Center on Technology and Disability
Project of the U.S. Dept. of Education. Plain-language family-facing AT resources, including school-based AT for IEP teams.
fctd.info
Research
Where the evidence lives.
If you want the actual studies behind a treatment, an AAC system, or a policy claim — these are the canonical U.S. portals.
NIDILRR
National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research. The largest federal funder of disability research in the U.S. NARIC database indexes thousands of disability-research publications.
acl.gov — NIDILRRPubMed
U.S. National Library of Medicine search interface. Search for "aphasia treatment efficacy," "AAC outcomes," "dysarthria intervention" etc. for peer-reviewed evidence.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.govASHAWire
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's open journal hub. Many AAC and aphasia treatment studies are open-access here.
pubs.asha.orgDid we miss someone?
If your community has a trustworthy organization we didn't list — or if a link here is out of date or no longer aligned with the community it claims to serve — write us. We add and remove based on the communities themselves, not on our guesses.
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