The National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (NAAOP) released its latest webcast in which Peter Thomas, JD, in addition to introducing Annika Berlin, the 2025 George and Dena Breece Fellow, gave an update on Medicaid reform, the tariff impact on O&P, and the organization’s Congressional Fly-In.
Berlin is halfway through her ten-week fellowship and is gaining experience and learning about O&P policy and advocacy. She has helped draft an article for The O&P EDGE magazine on Medicaid reforms and researched and authored a paper on the impact of tariffs on orthotic and prosthetic imports. Berlin is helping plan NAAOP’s Congressional Fly-In on July 22 and 23, an event that is in partnership with OPGA. Berlin also visited Nikki Grace Strader of OPGA in Iowa to understand its operation as well as gain exposure to the Iowa state legislature.
Berlin also spent two days in Michigan with Nate Kapa, CP, NAAOP president, learning about clinical practice and visiting the Michigan State House. She rounded out her clinical experience at a Hanger Clinic at the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Washington DC hosted by Maggie Baumer, JD, former NAAOP president. Berlin will continue her fellowship experience through July before returning to her employer, Psyonic, an upper-limb prosthetics manufacturer.
Medicaid Reforms: The most recent version of the Budget Reconciliation bill before Congress is about make major changes to the Medicaid program, as well as private coverage available through the Affordable Care Act. The Congressional Budget Office has forecast that as many as 16 million people will lose access to healthcare coverage as the federal government reduces funding for the Medicaid program by a little less than $1 trillion over ten years. This is likely to have a major impact on access to care and is expected to have a negative impact on people with limb loss and limb impairment who rely on Medicaid for their O&P coverage, Thomas said.
Tariffs: Working in collaboration with the O&P Alliance, NAAOP has been researching and drafting a statement to help educate the O&P field on the impact of tariffs on O&P imports. The paper will examine the Nairobi Protocol, an international agreement that provides for duty-free treatment of devices, parts, and accessories that serve the needs of people with disabilities, Thomas said. However, there are key exceptions to tariff law that exempt certain O&P parts and accessories from duty-free treatment, he said. The paper will be released as soon as it has been fully vetted and adopted by the national O&P organizations.
NAAOP Congressional Fly-In: In partnership with OPGA, NAAOP is hosting its first in-person Congressional Fly-In to educate Congress on key O&P priorities. The 30-person event is invitation-only and focuses on board members, fellows, and members of NAAOP who are represented by legislators on key Congressional committees. The agenda will focus on advancing the Medicare O&P Patient-Centered Care Act, securing funding for O&P outcomes research, and other O&P priorities, Thomas said.
To view a recording of the webinar, visit NAAOP’s website.
To watch the latest NAAOP webcast visit its YouTube page.
