NAAOP congratulates our Founding Executive Director, George W. Breece , on his retirement after 39 years with our association.  George has been an incredible leader of NAAOP through the past four decades and we wish him and his lovely wife, Dena Breece , well as they enter this new chapter of their lives. George will be seriously missed as NAAOP forges its own new chapter as an active policy and advocacy organization, working to improve the lives of people with limb loss and

The end of the year brought major policy improvements and new challenges for O&P practitioners, clinics and patients as CMS made significant announcements. New and Expanded Knee Orthoses Coverage :  The DME MAC Medical Directors recently announced a new Local Coverage Determination (LCD L33318) expanding coverage of knee orthoses for Medicare beneficiaries with osteoarthritis, a condition not recognized for Medicare coverage for many years.  The proposed LCD was issued this p

Join NAAOP President Nate Kapa, CP, General Counsel Peter Thomas, and Powers Principal Leela Baggett for a detailed explanation of CMS's recent Final Regulation that will renew and expand Medicare Competitive Bidding for OTS back, knee, and upper extremity orthotics. Topics will include major alterations to the existing competitive bidding program, a new system for Remote Item Delivery, the methodology for determining competitively bid reimbursement levels, implications for M

As of December 1, 2025, NAAOP is accepting applications for its annual George and Dena Breece Health Policy and Advocacy Fellowship. NAAOP is a national nonprofit association advocating for consumers/patients requiring orthotic and prosthetic care, as well as the providers who serve them.  The NAAOP Breece Fellowship is a paid, 9-week summer program based in Washington, D.C.  One Fellow will be competitively selected for the 2026 term.    The Fellow will learn about orthotic

The National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (“NAAOP”), commends the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) for announcing today the expansion of Medicare and Medicaid coverage for anti-obesity medications to treat obesity itself, effective in January 2026. Due to the significant impact that obesity and related chronic conditions such as diabetes and cardio-vascular disease h

As major parts of the U.S. Government remain closed going through week four, NAAOP continues its advocacy on tariffs, funding of O&P research and service programs, and opposition to competitive bidding of off-the-shelf (OTS) orthotics. Commerce Department Investigation on Medical Devices: Annika Berlin, NAAOP’s 2025 George and Dena Breece Fellow, dove into the O&P tariffs issue this past summer and produced a detailed analysis of how tariffs impact orthotics and prosthetics.

Dear NAAOP Members and Friends: On July 17, 2025, U.S. Representatives Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson (R-PA), Mike Thompson (D-CA), Gus Bilirakis...

2025 Breece Fellow Update: Annika Berlin, the 2025 George and Dena Breece Fellow, is hard at work in Washington, DC, halfway through her...

George Breece, founding Executive Director of the National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics announced today...

President Trump and the 119 th Congress are taking the reins in Washington, D.C. and major changes in health care policy are in play....

New President and Congress :  Incoming President Donald Trump will be inaugurated on January 20th while the 119th Congress has just been...

As of December 2, 2024, NAAOP is accepting applications for its annual George and Dena Breece Health Policy and Advocacy Fellowship....

Significant developments are occurring in the area of upper limb prosthetic coding administered by the Medicare program. In addition, we...

July was an exceptionally busy month for NAAOP and our 2024 Breece Fellow, Taylor Haines, who has now completed her fellowship.  The hard...

We are thrilled to announce that on July 18, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) and the Durable Medical...

NAAOP has had a busy summer this year advocating on behalf of the O&P profession, and the patients we serve. Taylor Haines, the 2024...

Welcome Taylor Haines:  Taylor Haines, the competitively-selected NAAOP George and Dena Breece Fellow for the summer of 2024, began her...