Arkansas Center for Health Improvement
Community health workers play a vital role in bridging the gap between healthcare systems and underserved communities. Arkansas has newly created a statewide certification structure for community health workers and a pathway for them to receive reimbursement for their services from Medicaid and private insurers. This explainer provides an overview of community health workers in Arkansas.
publications
Community health workers play a vital role in bridging the gap between healthcare systems and underserved communities. Arkansas has newly created a statewide certification structure for community health workers and a pathway for them to receive reimbursement for their services from Medicaid and private insurers. This explainer provides an overview of community health workers in Arkansas.
This explainer provides an overview of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), examining its history, participation rates, purchasing patterns, program waivers, and how the federal budget reconciliation bill signed into law in July 2025 may affect the program and its role in addressing food insecurity and nutritional needs in Arkansas.
Medicare Advantage is an optional component of Medicare that allows beneficiaries to receive healthcare benefits from private insurance plans instead of the federal government. This dashboard shows how enrollment in Medicare Advantage and traditional Medicare has changed in Arkansas from 2013 through 2025.
Blog Posts
While health insurance marketplace plan premiums increased nationwide in 2026, the effects of these increases varied widely depending on state policy actions. This post examines how Arkansas’s approach compares to the approaches of peer states.
Millions of Americans will be traveling and taking part in outdoor activities over the Memorial Day weekend. Here are some tips for staying safe and healthy while celebrating the unofficial kickoff to summer.
Our podcast series on maternal and infant health, the Healthy Birthing Journey Podcast, is the subject of a story broadcast this week by Northwest Arkansas public radio station KUAF.
Maternal and infant mortality rates in Arkansas are among the highest in the nation, but a wide range of efforts are underway to change that. The Healthy Birthing Journey Podcast is a nine-part series in which we explore the data and issues behind maternal and infant health in Arkansas by speaking with the people working to improve outcomes for moms and babies across our state.
Each episode focuses on one of nine points on the birthing journey, from pre-pregnancy through delivery and into the postpartum period, where ACHI analysts and researchers have identified opportunities for Arkansas to make lasting improvements.
In the seventh episode of the Healthy Birthing Journey Podcast, we learn how home visiting programs and local community health workers can help improve maternal and infant health outcomes in Arkansas.
Podcast by ACHI
Limited access to nutritious food can undermine patient treatment and recovery. That’s especially true for the often long and arduous recovery many cancer patients face. Vulnerable populations who struggle with social and economic challenges such as food insecurity are at increased risk. Now a program called “Hope for Cancer: Healthy Outcomes Through Produce Prescriptions and Education” is exploring whether healthcare providers can complement a cancer patient’s existing treatment by increasing access to healthy, fresh foods through food-as-medicine interventions. To learn more about the program, we’re joined on this episode of the Wonks at Work podcast by Dr. Pete DelNero with the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
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Health Policy Board Policy Positions and Statements
ACHI’s Health Policy Board consists of 21 voting members (and two ex-officio members) from across the state who bring diverse perspectives and interests on health. This independent, self-perpetuating board identifies and establishes strategic priorities, provides direction and guidance, and serves as a forum for the exchange of ideas. The Health Policy Board guides ACHI’s involvement in and position on specific policy matters, and it issues position statements that articulate the health needs of Arkansans.