Arkansas Medicaid Payer Redesign Focused On Episodes Of Care Includes Developmental Disabilities & Behavioral Health

The Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) is preparing to launch a Medicaid payment redesign on July 1, 2012 that will reimburse provider organizations for episodes of care, rather than for individual patient interactions. The new payment system will affect provider organization reimbursements for individuals with developmental disabilities and behavioral health disorders. The redesign, officially called the Arkansas Health Care Payment Improvement Initiative, is a statewide cross-payer effort that includes the state Medicaid program, the federal Medicare program, as well as private payers including Arkansas BlueCross and BlueShield and other private insurance plans. In general, the goal is to . . .