Title 20 — Public Health and Welfare

(a) Any person violating this subchapter shall be guilty of a violation and upon conviction shall be fined in any sum not less than ten dollars ($10.00) nor more than twenty-five dollars ($25.00). (b) Each violation shall constitute a separate offense and shall be punishable as s…

(a) The circuit courts of this state having general equity jurisdiction are vested with jurisdiction and power to enjoin any violation of this subchapter by complaint by any resident or state board of this state in the county in which the alleged violation of this subchapter occu…

(a) Every person eligible for an eye examination, the payment for which shall or may be made out of public money, is guaranteed his or her freedom of choice between persons licensed under the laws governing the practice of optometry, § 17-90-101 et seq., and persons licensed unde…

(a) When expending public money for any purpose involving human eye examinations or the care of vision or examinations for the correction or relief of any visual or muscular anomaly of the eye, any state board, agency, commission, department, or political subdivision, or any empl…

The recommendation or naming of any particular ocular practitioner or group of ocular practitioners, professional association or firm, corporation, or association by any state employee or member of any state board, commission, department, political subdivision, or public school e…

It is the intent of the General Assembly to provide a method of assisting those persons within the state who as a result of personal injury, disability, or other medical condition are in need of supplemental benefits to improve or maintain reasonable quality-of-life standards. To…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Allowable expense” means charges incurred for needed products, services, and accommodations, including, but not limited to, medical care, rehabilitation, rehabilitative occupational training, and other remedial treatment and care;(2) “Beneficia…

(a) There is created in the State Treasury a revolving fund to be designated the “Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund”. The fund shall be a continuing fund, not subject to fiscal year limitations, and shall consist of:(1) All moneys received from those individuals who desire to es…

(a) The cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund are hereby given complete discretion as to the expenditure of principal and income of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund for the purposes set forth in this subchapter, not to exceed all of the income earned by the f…

(a) Benefits shall not be awarded:(1) Unless the claim has been filed with the cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund after the injury, disability, or medical condition exists; or(2) If any governmental entitlement or insurance program provides comparable benefits t…

(a) Any person filing a claim under the provisions of this subchapter shall be deemed to have waived any physician-patient privilege as to communications or records relevant to an issue of the physical, mental, or emotional conditions of the claimant. (b) If the mental, physical,…

Each local office of the Department of Human Services shall keep application forms prepared and provided by the cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund and make them available to any person upon request.

(1) The following information, when submitted to the cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund as part of an application, shall be confidential:(1) Documents submitted by a claimant which relate to medical treatment; and(2) Investigative reports, if confidential under …

(a) (1) (A) The cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund shall have the power to award benefits if satisfied by a preponderance of the evidence that the requirements for benefits have been met.(B) The cotrustees shall have authority to award the benefits either to the…

The cotrustees of the Special Needs Trust Revolving Fund shall prepare and transmit annually a report of their activities to the Secretary of the Department of Human Services. This report shall include the amount of benefits paid and a statistical summary of claims and benefits m…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) (A) “Home intravenous drug therapy services” means the items and services described in subdivision (1)(B) of this section furnished to an individual who is under the care of a physician in a place of residence used as the individual's home, by a…

(a) The Medicaid payment shall not exceed an amount equal to the lesser of the qualified provider's usual and customary charges for such services or the reimbursement schedule established under subsection (b) of this section when determined medically necessary by the Arkansas Med…

(a) The referring physician prescribing the home intravenous therapy shall be entitled to Medicaid payment for certain clinical management services determined by the Department of Human Services. (b) The schedule of physicians' fees for these services shall not exceed on a per di…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, no payment for home intravenous drug therapy services shall be made to any provider in which a physician or a physician's immediate family member has an ownership interest in the provider or in any situation where the phys…

When the home intravenous drug therapy medication must be administered by a licensed healthcare professional, the administration of this medication shall be provided by a licensed home health agency.

No person or entity shall sell intravenous drugs in this state or deliver the same into this state through the United States mail or a private carrier unless licensed by the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy.

No payment may be made under this subchapter for home intravenous drug therapy service which is provided in violation of this subchapter or which jeopardizes federal financial participation.

The provisions of this subchapter shall not be deemed to grant the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy any authority to regulate the practice of nursing in this state, and the practicing of nursing in this state shall remain the sole responsibility of the Arkansas State Board of Nur…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Arkansas Medicaid Program” means the program authorized under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1396 et seq., that provides for payments for medical goods or services on behalf of indigent families with dependent children and of…

(1) A person shall be liable to the State of Arkansas, through the Attorney General, for restitution, damages, and a civil penalty for an act or omission in violation of this subchapter if he or she:(1) Knowingly makes or causes to be made any false statement or representation of…

(a) (1) It shall be unlawful for any person to commit any act prohibited by § 20-77-902, and any person found to have committed any such act or acts shall be liable to the State of Arkansas through the Attorney General.(2) In a case in which direct monetary loss does not exist or…

(a) If the Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that a person has information or is in possession, custody, or control of any document or other tangible object relevant to an investigation or that would lead to the discovery of relevant information in an investigation…

(a) (1) (A) In any proceeding or investigation under this subchapter, if a person refuses to answer a question or produce evidence of any kind on the ground that he or she may be incriminated and if the Attorney General or prosecuting attorney requests the court in writing to ord…

(a) If the Attorney General determines that disclosure to the respondent of the evidence relied on to establish reasonable cause is not in the best interests of the investigation, he or she may request that the court examine the evidence in camera. If the Attorney General makes t…

(a) (1) A Medicaid provider or person providing healthcare goods or services under the Arkansas Medicaid Program is required to maintain all records at least for a period of five (5) years from the date of claimed provision of any goods or services to any Medicaid recipient.(2) (…

(a) Any action under this subchapter may be brought in Pulaski County Circuit Court or the county where the defendant or, in the case of multiple defendants, any one (1) defendant resides. (b) A civil action under this section may not be brought more than five (5) years after the…

(a) (1) Whenever it appears that any person is engaged in or intends to engage in the transfer, conversion, or destruction of assets, records, or property in an effort to avoid detection of violations of this subchapter or avoid paying restitution, fines, and civil penalties owed…

The Secretary of the Department of Human Services may suspend or revoke the provider agreement between the Department of Human Services and the person in the event that the person is found guilty of violating the terms of this subchapter.

(a) The court is authorized to pay a person sums, not exceeding ten percent (10%) of the aggregate collected civil penalty recovered, as it may deem just, for information the person may have provided that led to the detecting of false claims under this subchapter. (b) Upon dispos…

(a) Under this subchapter and the Medicaid Fraud Act, § 5-55-101 et seq., the Attorney General or a prosecuting attorney is entitled to recover reasonable and necessary expenses incurred during his or her investigations and prosecutions. (b) The Attorney General shall create and …

(a) The Department of Human Services shall provide informational materials, including, but not limited to, parenting, child abuse, substance abuse, sexual abuse, and family planning, to parents whose children have been placed in state custody. (b) This information shall be provid…

In order to provide accountability to the citizens of Arkansas for funds appropriated to a private institution, Arkansas Children's Hospital shall file, annually, a certified annual financial and operations report with the Legislative Joint Auditing Committee and the Chief Fiscal…

(a) The Department of Human Services shall not expend any state or federal funds for childcare services to any childcare facility unless that facility is licensed or approved by the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education of the Department of Human Services, or regis…

(a) (1) The Child Health and Family Life Institute shall be administered under the direction of Arkansas Children's Hospital.(2) Arkansas Children's Hospital shall enter into a cooperative agreement or contract with the Department of Pediatrics of the University of Arkansas for M…

(a) Currently, sexually abused children often have to describe their sexual abuse several times to different professionals at different locations. Many investigations are conducted with little collaboration between the agencies involved in the cases. Each agency's child abuse pro…

(a) Reports, correspondence, memoranda, case histories, medical records, or other materials compiled or gathered by a children's advocacy center shall be confidential and shall not be released or otherwise made available except:(1) To the attorney representing the abused child in…

(a) A private business that provides short-term child care for its patrons shall perform a criminal history check with the Department of Arkansas State Police and a Child Maltreatment Central Registry check with the Department of Human Services for every employee that is employed…

The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences shall report quarterly each fiscal year to the Legislative Council on program activities and the expenditure of funds from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Psychiatric Research Institute and Department of Pediatrics a…

This subchapter shall be known and cited as the “Childcare Facility Licensing Act”.

(1) As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:(1) (A) “Child Care Appeal Review Panel” or “panel” means an eleven-member body under the Department of Human Services which shall serve as a review and appeal body regarding licensure or registration actions.(…

(a) (1) Any person violating any provisions of this subchapter and any person assisting any partnership, group, corporation, organization, or association in violating any provisions of this subchapter shall be guilty of a violation and upon conviction shall be fined in any sum no…

When any person, partnership, group, corporation, organization, or association shall operate or assist in the operation of a childcare facility which has not been licensed by the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education of the Department of Human Services or has had t…

(a) There is created the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education within the Department of Human Services. In creating the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education, the General Assembly intends for the following to be maintained and enhanced:(1) Coordinati…

(a) (1) (A) The Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education shall promulgate and publish rules setting minimum standards governing the granting, revocation, refusal, and suspension of licenses for a childcare facility and the operation of a childcare facility.(B) In deve…

Any rule promulgated by the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education under authority of § 20-78-206 or under any other childcare facility licensing law shall, at the suit of any interested person instituted in the Pulaski County Circuit Court, be subject to remedies p…