Public Health Welfare and Labor Committee - Senate and House
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- October 5, 2026
Members, if you would, grab your seats. Senator Crowell, will you open us with prayer? If
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
3:18
you would, hit your mic, I'll turn you on. There you go. Dear Lord, we come before you today and humble just to serve the people. please lord be with us when we're serving and be have your hand in our brains and our thought
processes when we do what we do for the people thank you for all your blessings and forgiveness of our sins in your name we all
pray amen thank you senator with that i need a motion for the uh january 7th meeting minutes a motion i have a second i have a second
all those in favor say aye All opposed, ayes have it, minutes are adopted. Item C
on the agenda, Ms. Elizabeth Pittman, Paula Stone, we have a rule for DHS.
If you guys would, introduce yourself for the record and
Speaker 28
4:21
you're recognized to present your rule. Paula Stone, Director, Office of
Speaker 30
4:25
Substance Abuse and Mental Health, Department of Human Services. Elizabeth Pittman,
Speaker 28
4:34
Director for Division of Medical Services, Department of Human Services. This rule allows rehabilitative hospitals to open psychiatric units, provide psychiatric acute services, and be reimbursed by Medicaid.
We did not have that ability prior to this rule. We have one rehabilitative hospital that's opened in Jefferson County that is providing that psychiatric service. Medicaid was unable to pay for it. And this is a needed service across the state, particularly in that area of the state. So this allows us to be able to reimburse for those services. That's a proper
explanation. Seeing no questions, without objection, this rule stands reviewed.
So if we would, I think you guys have the next rule and the next rule. So if you would, carry
Speaker 36
5:23
on, Ms. Pittman. Yes, thank you. The next rule is to allow the Department of Human Services to participate in the cell and gene therapy model, which is a Center for Medical Services model that allows us to enter into value-based payment agreements to treat patients with sickle cell disorder with CGT therapy. I'm happy to take any questions regarding that.
seeing no questions this rule also stands reviewed without objection next rule please the last
Speaker 36
5:57
rule we have on the agenda today is a rule to allow us to be exempt from the recovery audit contractor requirement of cms we believe that this is unnecessary cms has agreed and approved this exemption because we have four other layers of program integrity in place both internal and external, including the Office of Medicaid Inspector General and the Attorney General Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.
This has no cost because it is simply just allowing us to be exempt from that requirement. And again, happy
Representative Jack Ladyman
Unverified
6:33
to take any questions. Representative Ladyman, you're recognized. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I don't have a problem with this rule, but can you expand a little bit on what a recovery audit
Speaker 36
6:43
contractor is? What do they do now? Yes, sir. So they usually, on a contingency basis, will go and look for fraud, waste, or abuse of Medicaid providers and then do recoveries of those providers who have committed that fraud, waste, abuse, or overpayment.
They get a percentage of that as a contingency for anything that they recover. There's a state law that we are not allowed to enter into contingency arrangements for those types of agreements, so we were not able to secure a recovery audit contractor using a traditional form of payment. And so we look to other ways of doing the same function, program integrity function, to ensure that we're not overpaying or paying out claims that are fraudulent or wasteful. Yes, sir. We have, internally, we have our team that does retrospective reviews to look for medical necessity and appropriate billing.
We have a program integrity or payment integrity office that's external to the DMS team that also looks post-payment to see patterns of waste, fraud, or abuse. They also look for things we could do in our payment policy to make things a little more efficient and transparent. Then we have external to us the Office of Medicaid Inspector General. They are looking for fraud, waste, and abuse and make credible allegations of fraud that they then turn over to the Attorney General's Office for the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. And they prosecute civil and criminal fraud.
Yes. Seeing no further questions. This rule also stands reviewed
without objection. Thank you members There was a computer left on the table in the back. It's an iPad issued by the house representative So if somebody's missing their iPad, you're welcome to pick it up up here at
the chairman's desk See you know other business Yeah, represent
Representative Aaron Pilkington
Unverified
8:31
It's under new business. Yeah, go for it.
I just think we're all here anyways. Yeah. We've
only been here seven minutes, so you're doing good.
Representative Aaron Pilkington
Unverified
8:46
Yeah. Ms. Pittman, your recognized answer to Representative Pilkin's question. Good evening, Representative Pittman. And I'm sorry to put you on the spot here because I'm sure you weren't prepared to talk about this. But I got the postpartum report that DHS does every quarter, and we saw an increase in uninsured. Do you guys have any kind of explanation for that spike in uninsured?
Speaker 51
9:04
You're right. I was not prepared to talk about that
Representative Aaron Pilkington
Unverified
9:07
today. If you don't, that's okay. I just figured while
Speaker 51
9:10
we had you, we could have that discussion. I mean, Lori's coming. I would defer to Mary or Lori
Speaker 52
9:19
on that one. So, Lori. Hi, good morning. Lori McDonald, DHS. Representative Pilkington, I did send you those. I'm sorry. I did send you those reports yesterday. I don't have answers to those questions, but I will certainly get with Director Franklin and get back with you. That's fine. We just,
Representative Aaron Pilkington
Unverified
9:33
while we're here in the room, I just wanted to just get some information.
But we can have the discussion offline. I'm not trying to get you or anything. Just wanted to kind of see what was going on, if you all had any reasoning behind it. But we can talk offline. Thank
Speaker 55
9:53
you. I'll get that for you. Representative Johnson. Yeah, Mr.
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified
9:55
Chairman, we have a handout here. I'm trying to figure out what it applies to with regard to the agenda around ensuring program integrity in Arkansas Medicaid. Is that something? It was the handout associated with E. E.
Sorry. Okay. Sorry I missed that one. Thank you. Yes, sir. All right.
See you. No further business. We stand adjourned. Thank you.
Agenda
A. Call to Order
B. Consideration to Approve the January 7, 2026, Meeting Minutes [Exhibit B]
C. Department of Human Services (DHS), Division of Medical Services (DMS), Review of Rule, Rehabilitative Hospital Provider Manual [Exhibit C]
D. DHS, DMS, Review of Rule, Cell and Gene Therapy (CGT) Model [Exhibit D]
E. DHS, DMS, Review of Rule, Recovery Audit Contractor Exemption SPA [Exhibit E]
F. Other Business
G. Adjournment
Documents
Speakers
Speaker 2
Speaker 4
Speaker 13
Representative Jeff Wardlaw Chair
Unverified
Senator Steve Crowell
Unverified
Speaker 28
Speaker 30
Speaker 36
Representative Jack Ladyman
Unverified
Speaker 45
Representative Aaron Pilkington
Unverified
Speaker 51
Speaker 52
Speaker 55
Representative Lee Johnson
Unverified