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DHS seeks 30 additional autism‑waiver slots for children up to age 7; wait list to shrink to 11
Summary
Department of Human Services proposed adding 30 slots to an intensive autism waiver for children birth–7; DHS said the waiver currently serves 50 children, 41 are on the wait list and the change would reduce the list to 11; CMS review is pending.
Melissa Stone, division director for developmental disability services at the Arkansas Department of Human Services, presented a rule amendment to expand an autism waiver serving children birth through 7. The waiver currently allows 50 slots; Stone said the amendment would add 30 additional slots so the program could serve up to 80 children at a given time.
Stone told the committee the waiver focuses on treating children in natural environments and includes a parental training component. She said the waiver amendment has been sent to CMS for review and DHS has a call scheduled to answer CMS questions. "We have 41 children waiting on this waiver, and we will remove 30 with these slots," Stone said, noting turnover when children age out at 7.
Representatives asked about costs and why the wait list would not be entirely eliminated. Stone said the waiver was written initially for a previous set of slots and that new children had since been added to the list; she and committee members agreed DHS would provide additional data on average wait times and age at enrollment.
On appeals, Stone explained that disputes over treatment plan hours follow the standard Medicaid appeals process: internal hearings within DHS and, if necessary, circuit court review. The committee accepted the presentation for review.
