TO REQUIRE CERTAIN REIMBURSEMENT RATES FOR HOME- AND COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES WITHIN RISK-BASED PROVIDER ORGANIZATIONS.

Minimum pay for Medicaid home care providers

Arkansas requires Medicaid risk-based provider organizations and direct care providers to agree on payment rates and service policies. Future negotiated rates must meet new state minimums, regardless of existing Medicaid rates. Existing exceptions in Arkansas Code § 20-77-2706(d)(2) and (e)(2) remain. A rate study due by October 1, 2025, sets the minimums for covered home- and community-based services. It covers the Community and Employment Support 1915(c) waiver and the 1915(i) state plan amendment. State payments to provider organizations must include enough money to pay these minimum rates. The study must reflect provider costs, use provider input, and follow federal standards as they existed January 1, 2025. Rates and service policies must support efficient, quality care and equal access compared with people outside Medicaid. If no study has occurred since these organizations began serving, increases above 10% may be phased in over two years. That phase-in must fit state appropriations and budgets. The Department of Human Services must also conduct full provider rate reviews on its published schedule to keep rates aligned with costs. These rules govern provider payments, not checks to households.