by Steve Brawner (BRAWNERSTEVE@MAC.COM)

Editor’s note: The State of the State series provides reports twice a year on Arkansas’ key economic sectors. The series publishes stories to begin a year and stories in July/August to provide a broad mid-year update on the state’s economy. Link here for the State of the State page and previous stories.

With Arkansas’ Medicaid system still rebalancing after the COVID pandemic and Arkansans ranking near the bottom in health metrics, the state of the state’s health care is challenging.

One of the biggest health-related stories this past year has been Arkansas’ “unwinding” of its Medicaid rolls. During the COVID pandemic, the federal government provided extra money to states provided that they didn’t disenroll recipients throughout the emergency. That restriction ended April 1. While most states opted to abide by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ 14-month-time frame, Arkansas law accelerated its redetermination process over a six-month period.

State of the State 2024: Arkansas health care faces challenges