KUAR | By Tess Vrbin / Arkansas Advocate
From the Arkansas Advocate:
Arkansas Medicaid recipients and advocates repeated their ongoing messages that the state Department of Human Services should provide broader Medicaid coverage and process applications more efficiently at a Tuesday demonstration outside DHS’ Jefferson County office.
Arkansas Community Organizations, the group behind the protest, has continually emphasized the benefits of the federally-funded health insurance program and the struggles low-income Arkansans face when they cannot afford health care or get on Medicaid quickly. On Tuesday, the group added a new message: that DHS employees are overworked and under-supported.
“When you walk into DHS, prepare to take a number and sit for a long time,” Medicaid recipient William Gerard said. “There might be two workers at four windows and not enough [support] to serve their caseload.”
Activists continue to call for changes to Arkansas Medicaid, allege unfair losses of coverage
Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate
Organizers with Arkansas Community Organizations hold up signs advocating for better Medicaid coverage outside Jefferson County’s Department of Human Services office in Pine Bluff on Tuesday, September 10, 2024.