Arkansas Medicaid To Limit Early Intervention Services To Children Also Needing At Least One Therapy Service

On July 1, 2018, the Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) will implement a rule limiting eligibility for Medicaid early intervention services to children up to age five who are diagnosed as needing at least one therapy (physical, occupational, or speech) or nursing service. At the same time that the rule goes into effect, DHS will merge its two developmental day care programs into a single entity called “Early Intervention Day Treatment” (EIDT).

The programs that are merging are Child Health Management Services (CHMS) and Developmental Day Treatment Clinic Services (DDTCS). CHMS operates like a pre-school and eligibility is . . .