10-04-2025
Arkansas postpartum Medicaid extension bill fails in Senate committee
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – A bill to extend Medicaid coverage for postpartum mothers failed in its Senate committee hearing on Wednesday.
House Bill 1004 had a relatively easy time passing the House after its introduction there, sending it to the Senate. The Wednesday vote in the Senate Public Health, Welfare and Labor Committee, however, marked the end of its process.
Bill to extend Medicaid postpartum care to 12 months passes Arkansas House, heads for Senate
Advocates for the bill spoke about the importance of extending postnatal care for those who did not qualify for the ARHome program, which was the bill's intent.
Opponents of the legislation were concerned about its expense. Others pointed out that Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders-backed Health Moms, Health Babies Act, passed earlier in the session, did not include the 12-month extension.
Opposition included testimony from a Department of Human Services representative.
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signs 'Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies Act' into law
Healthy Moms, Healthy Babies did streamline entry into the Medicaid maternal care process. The governor said earlier that she did not feel the state needed to extend postpartum care past 60 days.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
