AOPA is pleased to share some exciting news coming out of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) that will eliminate some of the most frustrating administrative hurdles to providing the best clinical care possible to those who have served our country.

On April 22, 2026, VA Secretary Doug Collins exempted approximately 95% of prosthetic limb orders from a longstanding policy requiring payment approval from a designated VA contracting officer before procurement could move forward. This requirement added significant time to the procurement process and often led to unnecessary and frustrating delays in the provision of clinically appropriate, medically necessary prosthetic care.

As part of the announcement, Secretary Collins stated, “Every day counts for Veterans. By removing needless bureaucracy, VA is enabling clinicians and procurement teams to provide Veterans with high-quality prosthetic care, better and faster than before.”

According to the VA, the policy change has already begun delivering meaningful results, including:

  • A reduction in wait times for prosthetic care of approximately 10 days since the policy was implemented in late April.
  • Anticipated improvement in average delivery times from 94 days to 54 days, a reduction of more than 40%.
  • More streamlined and consistent procurement procedures with the VA’s community-based prosthetic partners.
  • Reduced administrative burden for clinicians and procurement teams, allowing them to focus on patient care rather than bureaucratic approvals.

While most prosthetic services will no longer require contracting officer approval, certain high-cost services will continue to undergo review. Those services that remain subject to approval should still benefit from improved processing times as contracting officers’ caseloads are reduced.

The VA serves more than 45,000 veterans with major limb loss each year, making timely access to prosthetic care essential for maintaining mobility, independence, and quality of life.

AOPA continues to work collaboratively with the VA to ensure that veterans have access to the highest levels of clinical prosthetic care available. This policy change represents another example of how collaboration between the O&P profession and the VA can result in improvements that benefit veterans, clinicians, and providers alike.

AOPA applauds Secretary Collins and VA leadership for taking meaningful action to reduce unnecessary delays and improve access to prosthetic care for our nation’s veterans.

For more information on this see the VA announcement with linked resources here.

If you have questions, please contact Ashlie White at awhite@AOPAnet.org or Joe McTernan at jmcternan@AOPAnet.org.