Arkansas Act 1593 of 2007: An Act to Ensure Better Utilization & Coordination of the States Behavioral Health Care Resources Devoted to Serving Children, Youth, & Their Families

The legislation, Act 1593 of 2007, calls for the creation of the Children's Behavioral Health Care Commission (CBHCC). Ten to 20 governor-appointed members will serve as advocates for children, families, and representatives of a variety of behavioral health care agencies, disciplines, and providers. The CBHCC is charged with identifying and implementing changes to the current system including:

• Identifying up to $2 million per year to meet extraordinary, non-Medicaid reimbursable needs of children, youth, and their families
   
• Revising state Medicaid rules and regulations to increase quality, accountability, and appropriateness of Medicaid-reimbursed behavioral health care services including clarifying behavioral health care services definitions, revising Medicaid case review requests, defining standardized early identification screening and assessment processes
   
• Creating additional capacity within the Arkansas Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Behavioral Health Services, to develop, support, and oversee the new system of care. This will include developing outcomes-based data tracking and decision-making, and creating additional staff support for technical assistance to encourage use of the information and implementation of best practices