Financial Impact Of Arkansas’ Private Option Plan For Insurance Premium Assistance

March 13, 2013
Arkansas is planning to expand Medicaid eligibility to low-income uninsured adults and is seeking federal approval to use Medicaid funding to pay premium subsidies to private health plans that would enroll the expansion population. On February 22, 2013, Governor Mike Beebe said the secretary of the federal Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) had approved the concept, enabling the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) to continue developing the plans. Specifically, the federal HHS said existing Medicaid rules allow Arkansas to place people who would fall under Medicaid expansion in the private insurance market. This . . .