Latest news with #Bill1427
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Arkansas legislative panel removes additional prison funding bill from consideration
Sen. Jimmy Hickey (left), R-Texarkana, votes present on House Bill 1427, cosponsored by Sen. Missy Irvin (center), R-Mountain View, on the Arkansas Senate floor on February 18, 2025. At right is Sen. Ricky Hill, R-Cabot. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate) A legislative budget committee on Monday pulled down a bill that would have added $250 million to a fund dedicated to prison construction in Arkansas. The decision comes less than a week after state lawmakers said a separate $750 million appropriation bill to support construction of a 3,000-bed prison in Franklin County appears dead after five failed votes in the Senate. Disputes over the two bills are the latest in a monthslong battle to fund and build a new state penitentiary in the rural western Arkansas county. Senate Bill 633 would authorize the addition of $250 million from general revenue to a correctional facilities fund that the Legislature placed $330 million into in 2023. State lawmakers also set aside $75 million in 2022 for expanding the state's prison capacity, and that money has already been allocated to the Arkansas Department of Corrections. Republican lawmakers questioned the intent of SB 633 during the Joint Budget Committee's meeting Monday. Rep. Jim Wooten, R-Beebe, asked if the bill was 'a backdoor way' to fund the new penitentiary. Meanwhile, Sen. Jimmy Hickey, R-Texarkana, sought assurances that state officials wouldn't try to pull money from a separate $350 million miscellaneous appropriation to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration to support prison construction. 'I have no problem moving money into this account, but I think that we need to have a path of where we think we're going…but what I want to make sure is that it's not our intention that we're going to use a large part of that miscellaneous appropriation that we give through DF&A to fund this prison,' Hickey said. Arkansas lawmakers consider other funding methods as they abandon sixth prison appropriation vote Specifically, Hickey asked if the $75 million that's already been allocated to the corrections department would be used to assess a more detailed cost estimate of the whole project as requested by some state lawmakers. Magnolia Republican and Joint Budget Committee Chairman Rep. Lane Jean said the goal is to spend the $75 million first. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders has called for expanding bed capacity at state prisons to alleviate overcrowding in county jails. A lack of space at Arkansas prisons has led to some state inmates being housed in local jails. Controversy arose last October when Sanders announced the state purchased 815 acres near Charleston for nearly $3 million as a site to construct a new prison. Local residents and state officials decried the lack of transparency in the decision and have pushed back against the project for months. The Arkansas Board of Corrections has moved forward with the project by hiring a construction management company and seeking proposals from architectural firms and contractors. Searcy Republican and JBC Vice Chair Sen. Jonathan Dismang recommended removing SB 633 from consideration Monday, noting that the corrections department isn't likely to use all $75 million before next year's fiscal session in April when lawmakers could again explore options for funding prison expansion. If officials do need additional funding before then, they have the ability to request lawmakers' approval for a temporary appropriation increase, Dismang said. 'There's no reason to have a continued debate this morning with where we are in the session,' he said. The Arkansas Legislature is scheduled to finish the bulk of its work by Wednesday, before recessing for a few weeks and officially adjourning the legislative session on May 5. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
State lawmakers aim to tackle Arkansas' maternal health crisis with new legislation
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announces the "Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act," which intends to reduce Arkansas' high maternal mortality rate. Republican legislators and cosponsors of the proposed legislation, Sen. Missy Irvin of Mountain View and Rep. Aaron Pilkington of Knoxville, are at right during a press conference at the state Capitol on Feb. 6, 2025. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate) Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Thursday announced new legislation aimed at improving maternal health for the lowest-income Arkansans. Much of the legislation, contained in identical versions of House and Senate bills filed Thursday, would make changes in the state Medicaid program, which Sanders said would cost about $45 million a year. The Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act would establish presumptive Medicaid eligibility for pregnant Arkansans so they can receive prenatal care while their application is being processed. The legislation also proposes reimbursement for doulas and community health workers and establishing pregnancy-related Medicaid coverage for remote ultrasounds, blood pressure monitoring and continuous glucose monitoring. These changes are expected to cost $7.44 million, according to a press release. 'We know that maternal health is complicated, and we know that it won't be improved by any one standalone policy,' Sanders said at a press conference at the Capitol Thursday. 'Today's announcement is the type of comprehensive, collaborative approach that we need to actually move the needle forward.' Arkansas has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the nation, and the third-highest infant mortality rate, according to the Arkansas Center for Health Improvement. More than half of births in Arkansas are covered by Medicaid, according to Arkansas Department of Health officials. Of the roughly 35,000 pregnancies in the state each year, 10,000 Arkansans don't see a doctor until after the first trimester, and 1,100 don't see a doctor until they're in labor, Sanders said. Components of the bill, such as unbundling Medicaid payments, aim to increase access to pregnancy-related care. The legislation would allow up to 14 prenatal and postal care visits to be covered, which is expected to cost an estimated $12.2 million, according to a press release. Unbundling Medicaid payments is 'huge,' said Sen. Missy Irvin, R-Mountain View, who, along with Rep. Aaron Pilkington, R-Knoxville, filed identical versions of the Sanders-backed bill Thursday — House Bill 1427 and Senate Bill 213. 'The legislation is designed to be specific, intentional and targeted,' Irvin said. 'We know where the problems exist based on the data and the research that has occurred.' The state Medicaid program will also use $25.7 million to increase reimbursements for deliveries and c-sections by 70%, which would increase access to care by encouraging more doctors to participate in Medicaid, Sanders said Thursday. The governor, by executive order last March, created a strategic committee tasked with suggesting ways to improve the state's poor maternal health outcomes. Sanders' proposed budget includes $13 million to support recommendations made by the committee last September, which included wider use of telehealth services and mobile health units, and improving pregnant Arkansans' access to transportation so they can get to and from doctors' appointments. At Thursday's press conference, Sanders highlighted other steps state agencies have taken to address Arkansas' maternal health crisis, such as expanding prenatal care at local health units, launching a maternal health pilot program in five counties with poor maternal health outcomes, securing a $17 million grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and moving forward with a statewide public service announcement campaign. One thing Arkansas has not done is extend Medicaid coverage for postpartum mothers from 60 days to 12 months after birth. Arkansas is the only state that has not taken action on this option. Sanders has previously stated this would be 'redundant' due to the state's other health insurance options. Sanders reiterated her stance Thursday, saying 'that coverage to access exists, but we have to do a much better job of raising awareness and making sure moms are connected to it.' Rep. Ashley Hudson of Little Rock, the sole Democratic co-sponsor of the bill, said she's 'thrilled' about ensuring presumptive Medicaid eligibility, but would have preferred the bill to include extended care. 'Obviously I'd like to see the 12-month postpartum coverage included, but at this point we know that we have a maternal health crisis, we need to be doing something,' Hudson said. 'So I'm not going to throw out good in search of great. I'm looking forward to seeing the changes that we get from this bill and the improved outcomes for moms.' House Minority Leader Rep. Andrew Collins, D-Little Rock, has filed House Bill 1008, which proposes requiring Medicaid coverage for postpartum mothers for one year after giving birth. The bill has not yet been scheduled for a hearing by a committee. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
