The National Association for the Advancement of Orthotics and Prosthetics (NAAOP) submitted written testimony for the May 16 hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Health. John Register, a NAAOP board member, veteran, amputee, and former Paralympian athlete was the first witness at the oversight hearing on the capability of the department of veterans affairs (VA) to deliver state-of-the-art care to veterans with amputations.
Register testifies before the House VA Health Subcommittee hearing. Photograph courtesy of NAAOP.
“The issues to be addressed in this hearing are critical to the ability of veterans with amputations and other injuries and conditions to live active, fulfilling lives, to live as independently as possible, to participate in community activities, to raise families, and to work,” Register told the subcommittee.
Register testified that NAAOP agrees with and strongly supports the recommendation in the Healthcare Inspection: Prosthetic Limb Care in VA Facilities report (11-02138-116) that the VA’s Under Secretary for Health consider veterans’ concerns with the VA approval processes for fee-basis and VA contract care (with non-VA prosthetists) in order to meet the needs of veterans with amputations, according to an NAAOP press release. This is a key area that addresses the satisfaction of prosthetic care among veteran amputees. Register noted that H.R. 805, the Injured and Amputee Veterans Bill of Rights, addresses this very issue, and urged support for the bill’s passing.
To read Register’s complete testimony, visit the NAAOP website.
