Updates to the Personal Care and Arkansas Independent Assessment Provider Manuals (Concerning 20 CAR pts. 607, 634)

Statement of Necessity This rule streamlines the Personal Care (PC) Medicaid Provider Manual and Arkansas Independent Assessment (ARIA) Medicaid Provider Manual. The resulting changes make the manuals easier to understand and use and result in significant cost savings. This rule also implements Acts 625 and 853 of the 2025 session. Act 625 mandates adoption of an abbreviated independent assessment process for certain beneficiaries enrolled in a risk-based provider organization. Act 853 moved private care agency certification to the Department of Health. The PC manual currently contains information that is beyond the scope of State Plan Personal Care (SPPC). This rule repeals the current PC manual and issues a new, simplified, and streamlined manual to include only information regarding SPPC, as opposed to services contained in waivers to the state plan. These changes dispel confusion among overlapping programs, waivers, and policies, as well as better describe the parameters of SPPC. All removed information has been cross-referenced and linked to 43 other program manuals to ensure availability of services. The rule also separates services for adults from services for those under twenty-one, and the repeal implements Act 853, noted above. The ARIA manual currently contains information on how to administer independent assessments using the standardized ARIA tool to determine functional eligibility for Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) waiver/1915 state plan optional programs. While an independent assessment is mandatory to determine the functional need for waiver/1915 benefits, a standardized assessment tool (like ARIA) is not required (see 42 CFR Section 441.720) for SPPC. Accordingly, this rule removes the personal care section from the ARIA manual for consistency with the changes summarized below and confirms that use of the ARIA tool is not required. The Personal Care Medicaid Provider Manual outlines the new streamlined process for evaluation review to SPPC, replacing the ARIA for determining eligibility. The new Medical Eligibility Review process for SPPC will be operated by the same vendor that operates the ARIA at a much lower cost. It will use claims data to verify the requestor’s medical condition/diagnosis on file related to a physical impairment that creates barriers to Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) before approving the beneficiary for SPPC. The full process is outlined in the updated

A public hearing was held on this rule on June 24, 2026. The public comment period expired on July 12, 2026. The agency provided a public comment summary which, due to its length, can be accessed electronically on the General Assembly website.

• ALC summary agenda Aug 20, 2026
• ALC agenda Aug 20, 2026
• ALC meeting video Aug 20, 2026