Eric Dane Gets 24/7 Care Amid ALS Battle with Ex Rebecca Gayheart Helping Out

Rebecca Gayheart is stepping up to make sure her ex-husband, Eric Dane, gets the care he needs as he battles ALS. In a personal essay for The Cut, the 54-year-old actress shared how she fought with insurance companies to secure round-the-clock nursing for Dane, saying, “Eric has 24/7 nurses now.”

Dane, best known for his role on Grey’s Anatomy, revealed to PEOPLE in April that he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig’s disease.

ALS is a degenerative condition that slowly paralyzes muscles by attacking nerve cells in the brain and spine. There’s no cure, and over time, it affects a person’s ability to speak, walk, eat, and breathe independently, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Gayheart, who separated from Dane in 2018, has been deeply involved in managing his medical care. “Just figuring out the health-care system is its own thing — the health-insurance company will deny you what you’re asking for and you have to appeal and then you have to apply again,” she wrote.

She recalled one encounter with an insurance representative who said, “You can keep applying, and I’ll keep denying,” which prompted her to push harder. “I made it my mission. I was ‘locked in,’ as the kids would say. I crashed out, and then I locked it in,” Gayheart explained. After two appeals, the home nursing care was finally approved.

Dane’s care schedule is divided into 21 shifts. Gayheart explained, “There are times that shifts aren’t covered, so I cover them. There was a 12-hour shift recently that I could not cover. I could only do four hours because of all the stuff that the kids are doing.”

When she couldn’t cover a shift, she called on friends to help. “I thought, ‘I can’t believe I had to ask someone to do this.’ And of course when I asked for help, they said, ‘Yeah, anything, what do you need, what’s going on?’ And they both showed up and did a wonderful job.”

Not everyone has been as reliable, she admitted. “There are a lot of people who used to be more present in my life who I think about and wonder, ‘Where’d they go?’”

She has talked to her therapist about it and realized, “most people are not great in this situation because it’s so heavy. It’s not easy for people. So I don’t hold any grudges toward [anyone] who hasn’t shown up.”

Dane first noticed symptoms in early 2024. By June of this year, he had lost full function of his right arm and hand. His speech became slurred in September, and by October, he was using a wheelchair full time.

This story is a reminder of the challenges faced by ALS patients and the importance of support from loved ones. Rebecca Gayheart’s dedication shows how much caregiving can demand both persistence and compassion.

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