The Private Option has helped over 211,000 adults gain access to affordable coverage. This bi-partisan measure to extend health care insurance to thousands of Arkansas allows eligible adults (19-64 years) to purchase private plans with Medicaid funds.

The success of the Private Option has made Arkansas a national leader in reducing rates of uninsured adults. Hospitals have also benefited. Financial losses to hospitals for providing care to uninsured patients dropped by over 54 percent within six months.

When the Private Option was re-authorized during the 2014 fiscal session, the Arkansas legislature added several new requirements for the state to implement next year:

• Add new monthly payments for enrollees;
• Develop a health savings accounts program; and
• Limit transportation services to medical appointments.

It is important that we evaluate the impact of the proposed changes on Arkansas families, which we’ve done in our latest issue brief, “Keeping Arkansans Covered: How changes to the Private Option could hurt families.” The changes will be burdensome for many low-income families that cannot afford extra monthly expenses and rely on transportation benefits to attend doctor’s appointments. When families are required to pay more, it reduces enrollment and use of services. Also, the costs of administering health savings accounts could threaten the long-term sustainability of the Private Option. Similar efforts in other states have demonstrated the money spent to collect monthly payments, often exceeds any savings.

In order to implement changes to the Private Option, the state must receive federal approval. The state recently submitted amendments to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families reviewed the proposed amendments and sent a letter to HHS about the potentially harmful impact of these changes. A detailed analysis of the proposed changes to the Private Option is available in our new issue brief.