The man who helped launch the massively successful ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is facing financial problems, as his family struggles to pay medical bills of about 1 million U.S. dollars each year, reported Boston Globe.

据《波士顿环球报》报道，发起极为成功的冰桶挑战的发起人，现在正面临严重的经济问题，他的家人每年都要支付高达100万美元的医药费。

Pete Frates, 32, has suffered from amyotrophic lateral¹ sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease, since 2012. He has lost control of his limbs and is now on a ventilator. His condition requires 24-hour care.

皮特·佛瑞特今年32岁，自2012年开始就患上了严重的肌肉萎缩症。他的四肢已经不听使唤了，只能依赖呼吸机活下去，需要24小时不间断的医疗护理。

The cost of his caring can run between 70,000 and 95,000 U.S. dollars each month, Boston Globe quoted his mom Nancy Frates as saying. The annual cost could go close to 1 million. His care is not covered by insurance.

波士顿环球报》引述皮特母亲南希·佛瑞特的话称，他每月的医疗费用高达7万至9.5万美元，每年的费用接近100万美元，但是这笔费用却没有保险可以报销。

The ALS Association has a pilot program called the Pete Frates Home Health Initiative to help provide in-home care-giving assistance for individuals suffering from ALS in the U.S. State of Massachusetts, the article noted².

该报道指出，ALS协议有一个名为“皮特·佛瑞特家庭健康倡议”的试点项目，为美国马塞诸塞州的ALS病人提供居家护理服务。

In 2014, the former Boston College baseball player thought of an idea to raise money for people with the degenerative disease.

2014年的时候，这位前波士顿大学棒球运动员想到了一个为患有退步化疾病的病人筹集资金的主意。

It works like this: Dump a bucket of ice-cold water over your head, then challenge a friend or more to either do the same or donate money to the ALS Association.

想法是这样的：从头淋下一桶冰水，然后邀请其他人，要么也做一次冰桶挑战、要么就给ALS协会捐钱。

It went viral. The CNN reported that more than 17 million people dumped ice water over their heads, and in eight weeks, the ALS Association raised more than 115 million dollars.

随后，冰桶挑战迅速风靡起来。据CNN报道，共有超过1700万人进行了冰桶挑战，而ALS协会在不到8周的时间内就募集了1.15亿美元资金。

Numerous celebrities³ also took part in the global activity, such as Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Oprah Winfrey and Lady Gaga.

许多名人也参加到了这场全球性的活动中来，比如比尔·盖茨、马克·扎克伯格、奥普拉·温弗瑞和Lady Gaga等。