Thank you for your interest. Well-informed constituents are critical to effective advocacy.

This section primarily focuses on educational and informational resources. Here you will find a general summary of NAAOP’s position on some key issues facing the O&P community. Our routine updates and alerts contain very specific information regarding all aspects of healthcare policy and the corresponding implications for O&P patients and providers. Also in this section you will find links to governmental bodies involved in the healthcare policy development process. 

 

For more information on NAAOP, it's history, how it functions within the realm of healthcare legislation and regulation, and its role in education and advocacy, please read About NAAOP.

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Research:  Advancing O&P Care

One of NAAOP’s top priorities is O&P research, including funding and federal engagement.  One of NAAOP’s first successes in the legislative arena resulted in the Claude Pepper Act for Amputees, which led to passage of the National Institutes of Health Reauthorization Act of 1990, establishing the O&P research program at NIH.  NAAOP continues to support efforts to fund research and elevate O&P as a priority with the federal agencies that fund rehabilitation and disability research.

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Coverage

Access to quality orthotic and prosthetic care is paramount, which often translates into an effort to broaden coverage of O&P care.  Medicare is an important program that affects millions of Americans, but it also tends to set the standard of coverage for other government programs and private payers.  NAAOP has been a leader in fighting coverage restrictions in O&P care for decades, from the establishment of Medicare’s functional levels in 1993 to the establishment of essential health benefit packages in the states under the Affordable Care Act.  Most recently, NAAOP led the fight to overturn New York State’s “one limb per lifetime” coverage restriction under private insurance in that state.

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Quality and Qualifications

NAAOP members are dedicated to the highest standards of O&P patient care. NAAOP practitioner members are nationally certified and/or state licensed practitioners. We believe reliance on state licensure and national facility accreditation protects O&P patients by reducing exposure to unqualified providers.

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Coding and Payment

Consumers will only have access to quality O&P care if providers are able to be appropriately compensated for their services.  This includes a need for accurate coding, reasonable reimbursement levels, and confidence that reimbursements will not be subsequently recouped when coverage decisions are subsequently reversed.  This is a major priority for NAAOP because without appropriate reimbursement, quality and access to patient care will suffer.

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Become More Informed

NAAOP is committed to education and advocacy; to that end we strongly encourage your questions and feedback. Contact us with your issues of concern. Contact policymakers with your issues of concern.”

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Join Our Efforts

By joining NAAOP, you are partnering with other O&P professionals who are promoting the highest standards of professional O&P care. NAAOP’s goals are largely achieved by the commitment and dedication of members who are funding this effort. We continually make progress in key areas such as obtaining better evidence, ensuring better education of practitioners, providing greater and better technology for the O&P consumer and greater access to care,  supporting unity within the O&P community.