Bill to extend Medicaid post-partum care to 12 months passes Arkansas House, heads for Senate
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The Arkansas House passed a bill on Monday that would extend post-partum care for Medicaid recipients if it becomes law.
House Bill 1004 would extend the coverage from the current six months to 12 months. It passed with a bipartisan 71-10 vote, with 19 either not voting or voting present.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signs 'Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act' into law
The bill would provide extended coverage using funding from the Medicare and Medicaid Services Children's Health Insurance Program.
The bill has been transmitted to the Senate, where it has received its initial votes and been forwarded to the Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee for hearing.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders has opposed extending Medicaid coverage to 12 months. The Healthy Moms Healthy Babies Act, signed into law by the governor on Feb. 20, changes and streamlines the Medicaid maternal care process but does not extend coverage.
Arkansas earns an 'F' on March of Dimes report card for infant, maternal health
In November 2024, Arkansas received an 'F' from the March of Dimes for infant and maternal health. According to Arkansans for Improving Maternal Health, the state leads the nation in its maternal mortality rate.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Food Bank of Iowa warns about SNAP implications in President Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill'
DES MOINES, Iowa — The Food Bank of Iowa is sounding the alarm while the fate of the President's 'big, beautiful bill' sits in the United States Senate. The concerns outlined by the organization are food insecurity and limited resources that food banks already have. 'We're gravely concerned about the one big, beautiful bill act as written,' said Annette Hacker, Vice President of Strategy and Communications for the Food Bank of Iowa. 'It stands to slash $267 billion with a 'b' from SNAP over ten years. And it takes 9.5 billion meals a year off of the table for people facing hunger.' New law helps clear the way for birthing centers in Iowa The bill has states pay for these federal benefits, in part, through a cost sharing method. Hacker said that this would be roughly $40 million a year the state would have to account for, which to her doesn't feel possible. The legislation also raises the age of SNAP work requirements to 65-years-old, extending those requirements to parents without children younger than 7-years-old. 'The crushing need this would create is not possible for the charitable food system, that's us, to absorb. If you look at every Feeding America food bank in this country, of which Food Bank of Iowa is one of 200 and all the partners and pantries we stock across the entire country, that's 6 billion meals a year distributed. This would be 9.5 billion more meals, a gap that would have to be filled. And the math just doesn't work,' said Hacker. U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley said that the goal is for the chamber to take it up on the Senate floor in the last week of June. To volunteer or donate, visit the Food Bank of Iowa's website. Iowa News: Food Bank of Iowa warns about SNAP implications in President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' Winner named in Coolest Thing Made in Iowa contest New law helps clear the way for birthing centers in Iowa Iowa governor rejects GOP bill to increase regulations of Summit's carbon dioxide pipeline Third case of measles in Iowa this year reported by HHS Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Fire Watch program; helping veterans, first responders cope with trauma
The Brief A new virtual program is helping veterans and first responders cope with trauma. The Fire Watch program is available at Rogers Behavioral Health. FOX6 News spoke with a peer specialist who is, himself, recovering from trauma after military service. WAUKESHA, Wis. - Veterans and emergency responders are often first to run into the line of fire. Now, a new virtual program is giving them support to work through the trauma. What we know When veteran Chris Swift came back from serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, he said he had to learn some lessons the hard way. "Some people are like, 'Oh, tell me some cool stories.' Well, they're not always cool stories. They don't understand all the stuff that goes along with it," Swift said. "I drank a lot when I came back. I ended up getting three DUIs. I went to rehab at the VA for about four months, then I went to jail for about seven months." FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android Swift said he is now six years sober. He is also a peer specialist for the Fire Watch program at Rogers Behavioral Health. The goal of the program is to provide help and mental health support for veterans and first responders. The program first launched in September 2024. What they're saying "We can do a wide variety of things within this program. We focus on moral injury, but moral injury can come in a lot of different forms. And we can see it come across as anxiety or depression," said Jennifer Parra-Nelson, Clinical Director of Trauma Services & Fire Watch program. Moral injury is the guilt and shame that can come from trauma. The VA defines it as "the distressing psychological, behavioral, social, and sometimes spiritual aftermath of exposure to such events. A moral injury can occur in response to acting or witnessing behaviors that go against an individual's values and moral beliefs." Organizers said addressing that is an important part of the eight-week, 100% virtual program. Participants go through therapy, learn practical coping mechanisms, and connect with others going through the same thing. SIGN UP TODAY: Get daily headlines, breaking news emails from FOX6 News "We've seen a lot seen a lot of patients come in just with a lot of stigma. And with a lot of possibly thinking that maybe this won't work for them. And I think we've seen a lot of people be surprised that we are very accessible to this population," Parra-Nelson said. Swift said his goal is to help others who were in his shoes – for their sake and the sake of their loved ones. What you can do Learn much more about the Fire Watch program and how it might be able to help someone you love. Program organizers said insurance covers the Fire Watch program. Medicaid is also accepted. The Source The information in this post was provided, in part, by Rogers Behavioral Health.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Kansas faces $3.77B in Medicaid cuts, thousands to lose coverage under Trump's bill: report
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas will lose more than $3 billion in Medicaid funding, and thousands of Kansans will lose access to health insurance under Trump's proposed bill, according to a new report. New modeling shows 13,000 fewer Kansans would be able to enroll in Medicaid under the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' recently passed by the U.S. House, and the state would lose $3.77 billion in total Medicaid funding. Man charged in death of Platte County sports reporter shot on I-29 The modeling showed $2.29 billion in lost federal Medicaid funding alone—and $3.77 billion when combined with associated state funding losses over a 10-year period. Such losses would likely lead to higher uninsured rates and more financial struggles for rural hospitals already on the brink of closure. These results were recently released by Manatt Health, which conducted the analysis at the request of Kansas health philanthropies United Methodist Health Ministry Fund and REACH Healthcare Foundation. The two organizations wanted to better understand the financial and enrollment impacts of the bill, which would cut $700 billion from Medicaid and is awaiting a vote in the Senate. Medicaid, the public health insurance program that covers more than 366,000 Kansans, is funded jointly by the state and federal government. It provides low-income parents, children, seniors and people with disabilities with health insurance. Adults who do not have children do not qualify for Medicaid in Kansas. 'If this bill passes, it will cause long-lasting harm to thousands of families across Kansas and seriously threaten the survival of rural hospitals across the state,' said Brenda Sharpe, president and CEO at REACH Healthcare Foundation. The analysis shows Kansas will face significant coverage losses and funding reductions over the next 10 years. Manatt said the losses are even greater than shown in the analysis, as data limitations made it unable to model all the provisions in the bill. The estimates do not account for prohibitions on states setting up any new provider taxes or increasing assessments for other providers. That will cause Kansas health care providers, including nursing homes and other health providers, to lose critical funding over time and cause them to become even more financially vulnerable, Manatt said in a news release Wednesday. Coverage losses due to the bill's changes to the Affordable Care Act's Health Insurance Marketplace also couldn't be modeled. However, they will result in additional Kansans losing health insurance, according to Manatt. Not only will the bill remove people's health insurance, it also will remove food assistance. The bill includes $300 billion in cuts from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). 'Congress is trying to rush a plan through the process that will take health care and food assistance away from tens of thousands of Kansans, including children, seniors and people with disabilities,' said David Jordan, president and CEO at the Health Fund. 'At a time when hospitals are trying to keep their doors open and working families are struggling to keep a roof over their heads and food on their tables, we cannot afford these cuts.' Kansas already has more hospitals at risk of closure than any other state in the country. A recent report from the University of Kansas School of Nursing highlights the growing 'maternal care desert' in Kansas. Manatt said 63 rural hospitals are currently at risk, and 87% of Kansas rural hospitals are operating in the red. These hospitals struggle to survive with existing federal funding – and provisions in the bill would cause them to lose billions, making it even harder to stay open. When rural hospitals close, it removes job opportunities and access to health care, creating a ripple effect in small communities, Manatt said. You can read the full report below or by clicking here. Medicaid-Cut-Impacts-to-KansasDownload Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
